Female of The Species
by mandy's stories
Summary: This story begins the year after the end of season 3. Tig meets a woman under unusual circumstances - even for him.
1. Chapter 1  Female of the Species

Round Table

The club was in big trouble this time. Not that being in trouble was a new thing; but it just seemed like the latest crisis in a long line of stuff. Stuff that was pushing Clay's tolerance to the limit. He sat at the table and silently took a good look around at his crew and brothers. He pondered how he was going to deliver the bad news.

Bobby 'Elvis' and Opie were the last to walk in, so his people were still settling down before the meeting started.

At his right sat his Sergeant-at-arms, faithful as always and with a laid back attitude as he sat in his chair. It was only the frown across his brow that gave any indication that Tig knew they were up the creek without a paddle. He was the only one at 'chapel' who knew about the bad news Clay was about to impart. Chibs had spoken to the both of them earlier; but was still on the phone to Ireland so wasn't at the meeting yet.

Unlike the rest of the club, Tig's recent time in jail hadn't appeared to have changed him. He had just taken it in his stride and done the time. He'd saved Clay's arse more than once in prison, for which he was grateful.

Although Clay thought that Tig had been acting a bit weird when they had first been released from prison. At the 'get out' party Tig hadn't got into his normal 'let's screw all of the pussy in range' routine. In fact, he'd pretty much kept to himself. Clay remembered that he had asked his friend if everything was okay, and had virtually got his head bitten off. Clay had put it down to too much drink and maybe some bad drugs. Tig had disappeared for almost two days after that bash, and had just told everyone he'd 'been making up for lost time' when asked where he had been.

Tig was back to his normal self now, though. He had soon returned to being his right-hand man when it came to club business, and Clay knew he could rely on him.

He wasn't quite as confident about his support from his left-hand side. Jax was still his V.P. but his time in Stockton had seemed to have curbed some of his attitude and outspokenness. Clay understood it himself; he knew time in jail gave you too much time to think and ponder about your past mistakes. He guessed that Jax hadn't got whatever-bullshit-he-was-going-through out of his system yet, and just needed more time. He had no idea that Jax was currently thinking of leaving Charming, SAMCRO and everything it represented.

It had been 'Piney', Kozik and Opie who had kept the garage business going during that time, and protected the interests of the club. Kozik had decided to stay around until things settled down, although there was still some tension between him and Tig.

It had seemed to Clay that when he had finally got out of prison, that so much had changed or was changing. Including the men around this table who made up the members of SAMCRO. Except for Chuckie. Stupid prick was as cheerful and inane as ever. He seemed content working around the garage and ecstatic that everyone was back.

As Clay took a final look around the table and his crew settled down, he knew what SAMCRO really needed was time to rest and recuperate. To take some down time and get back to some sort of normal life. It had only been a few weeks since they had all got out of prison, but even Gemma had reminded him that the club needed to badly get their act together, or there would be some serious rifts ahead.

Clay briefly puts his hand across his forehead as he suddenly realises just how tired and worn out he was feeling. It goes quiet around the table, and he pulls his hand away as he realises the crew were ready for him to start. It takes an effort for him to keep his hands still on the table. They still felt weird after his time in Stockton, as the right meds hadn't been available for his arthritis. All he wanted to do now was to flex his fingers every few seconds, just to make sure he could still feel something. A habit Tig had pointed out made him appear nervous and he needed to curb.

Time to get back to business and no use feeling sorry for himself. If SAMCRO had any chance of getting through the next months, they needed him to be tougher than ever. To do whatever it took...

"We all know the situation. Laroy's crew are desperate for guns. They need a delivery by the end of next week at the latest, or we're going to lose their custom as well. Right now they're the only buyer's we've got..."

It is Juice who raises the first question. "What about supplying to Alvarez?"

Clay wasn't expecting that question, but it is Tig who responds. "No way, man. The wet-backs made it clear at the meet yesterday – the drug escort continues but they're looking at alternative suppliers".

Opie interrupts before Clay can add anything more. "At twice the cost and half the choice..."

"Their own damn fault for losing some of their territory to the Niner's" added Kozik.

Clay realises it is time to bring the meeting back to order. "Not our current problem."

"So why not drop out of the drug protection deal? We don't need that crap right now...". Clay looks at his step-son in surprise. Well, well. Maybe Jax was starting to get back to his normal, argumentative and critical self, after all...

"Alvarez didn't rule out a deal for guns in the future. Plus we can't afford a war with them right now" he responds.

Bobby adds "Clay's right. They could have done us some serious harm whilst we were all in the Can..."

"I think it was more likely they had their own problems with the Niners the last twelve months..." informs Kozik.

It goes quiet around the table. Clay turns to Jax. "You want us to re-vote on continuing the drug-protection runs?"

Jax looks surprised, as if he wasn't expecting any compromise from his step-father. He shakes his head and leans forward at the table, as if ready to say his piece. He did want the club out of the drug business, but now was not the time to raise the issue. "No, Bobby's right. If it's working out and keeping the Mayans happy, then we don't rock the boat. The money's too useful..."

The other's nod in agreement. Clay realises that it is time to raise the bad news. "The club's relationship with the Niner's and Mayans isn't our main problem right now..."

Before he can continue, the door to the room opens and Chib walks in. There is an unsettled look on his face, and Clay feels his stomach go cold as he looks up at him. He didn't need Chib to say anything, it was the confirmation he was looking for. He looks around at the crew as he continues, whilst Chib silently takes the spare seat. "The Irish are having to stop supplying us for a while..."

"What!" Jax raised voice interrupts. There is the sound of others voicing their concern, and Clay finds himself using his gavel as he raps on the table. It goes quiet around the table.

"We were promised a regular supply run and in increase in stock" states Opie. Clay looks at him with a raised eyebrow, as it he didn't appreciate him stating what everybody already knew.

Chib jumps in before anybody can say anything else, his accent heavier than normal at having to confirm the bad situation they are all in. "I've just been speaking to my contact's in Eire. The army's still going through some cleaning up following Jimmy's bull-shit. They haven't pulled out of the deal, but won't be able to supply on a regular basis, for the next six weeks..."

"Shit!"

Clay couldn't tell who had sworn out loud. "We need another supplier short-term, and I'm out of ideas. We need the money to cover the costs of the lawyers when we got out of the Can" he admits. He was uncomfortable admitting he didn't know where to go from here, but attempted to put confidence in his voice.

The silence that greets him speaks for itself. He notices from the corner of his eye that Jax is peering down at the table deep in thought. Clay found himself actually hoping for once that his step-son would come up with one his crazy but brilliant plans, even if he usually disagreed with them.

"We could ask around the other charters. See if they have any possible sources..." This one came from Piney, which again surprised Clay.

Clay continues to look around his brothers. "Any other suggestions?"

Happy doesn't lean forward in his chair as he responds, like most of the other guys usually did. The man was always like that, as though he didn't need to gain their attention or prove anything to anyone. "I'll make some calls. There were a few people I knew when I was Nomad..."

"Appreciated, Happy. I guess that's it then, for now..." Clay picks up the gavel in front of him, and is ready to finish the meeting. "Any other business?"

He is surprised when Chibs speaks up. He knew from his earlier conversation that the Irishman was embarrassed that his fellow countrymen had let the club down, but his response is not what he was expecting. "Chuckie asked me just now, if he could address the club before we finish..."

"What for?" asks Clay.

"He didn't say. Just that it was important" responds Chibbs

Clay notices there is an annoyed across Tig's face as he adds "If he makes one more 'I'm so glad to see you all back speech' I'm definitely going to throw up. And then I'm gonna beat the..."

Piney looks annoyed as he interrupts. "Give the guy a chance, Tig. Or have you forgotten what he did to help us before you all went in the Can?"

Clays sighs as he realises that the two of them were ready to argue. It seemed to be happening a lot between members of the club lately. He was sick to the back teeth of being the peacemaker. "Let's just get this over with. Get him in here, Chibs"

Tig shrugs and doesn't say anything as Chib gets up and moves to the door. He opens it and sees that Chuckie is pacing in front of the bar. The guy never seemed to stay still. "In here, Chuckie. Make this quick".

Chuckie heads towards the door, a look of enthusiasm on his face. However, he comes to an abrupt halt when he first steps into the room. All of the club are looking up at him in anticipation, and he finds himself bouncing from one foot to the other in nervousness. It suddenly dawned on Chuckie that this was one bunch of guys he really did not want to piss off.

Chib closes the door behind him and sits back down, a look of amusement on his own face.

Clay finds himself raising his right eyebrow as Chib is quiet, as if he didn't know where to start. It is Jax who finally speaks up, a look of sympathy on his own face. He'd always had a soft spot for Chuckie. "Speak your mind, Chuckie. What you say here stays here..."

Chuckie seems to make a decision, but his words come out in a rush. "I can help. I mean, I think I've got info that would help. I know the club's in trouble..."

"Spouting stuff like that in public could get you a whole lot deeper in the shit..." Tig's voice is dangerous, and Chuckie suddenly goes still, a stricken look on his face.

"Take it easy, laddie." Chib re-assures Chuckie. He gives Tig a hard look as if to make his point. "We know you can keep your mouth shut. Say what you need to..."

Chuckie looks around the room as if looking for further support, trying not to meet the eyes of Clay and Tig. His gaze falls upon Jax, who nods as if encouraging him to continue. Chuckie takes a deep breath to try and calm himself.

"I had a friend. When I was In Folsom, before I got transferred to Stockton and Otto looked out for me. He was a truck driver; got involved with some real bad people..."

Clay interrupts "This going somewhere?"

Jax butts in then, a sympathetic smile on his face. "Why don't we just see where this leads, Clay? Can't do any harm?" He looks back to Chuckie, who looks startled that someone was sticking up for him.

"Ollie – my friend – he had a plan when he got out. He was going to make himself a fortune from his last driving job. He managed to get the stuff hidden away, and we talked about opening a bar together with the money..." continues Chuckie.

"A nice story, but get to the point Chuckie" interrupts Bobby.

Chuckie gulps as he realises that he needed to finish this up. "The stuff he had hidden – they were stolen guns. A whole truck load of them..."

Clay leans forward as he peers more closely at the man who wasn't a member of the club, not even one of the prospects. He ignores the noise coming from others at the table, but raises his voice so that the others go quiet. He misses the look of astonishment on Tig's face. It took a great deal to surprise his Sergeant-at-Arms.

"Are you saying that you know where there's a stash of guns? I hope you're not just talking about a few handguns..."

Chuckie looks at Clay, and realises he had taken a chance by bringing this to the President of the club. He knew he had better tell them all of it. "I don't know that much about guns. I think Ollie said they were mostly AK's, Mach Ten's, RMG's, and even some grenades and C4. About 100-k worth, and they'd be worth more once he got out. That was five years ago, when they were stolen. No-one knew he had stashed them away, the guys he was working for thought another crew had hijacked them..."

"Shit! At today's prices, that's near quarter-of-a-mill on the current market..." adds Juice. Clay knew that he'd be the one to know stuff like that.

It suddenly goes quiet around the table as everyone took the information in. Most of them found it hard to cover the surprise on their faces at this unexpected news.

"How much does your friend want for the information, Chuckie?" asks Jax, a gentle tone to his voice. He had noticed that Chuckie looked like he was about to bolt. But he is surprised to see that Chuckie closes his eyes as if in pain. His voice is strangled and low as he responds. "He died in prison last month. OD'd..."

"But you know where the stash was hidden? Why didn't you say something before?" asks Clay, before Jax can say anything further.

Chuckie seems to take a breath before responding. "I don't know the exact location; only that it was near or in Charming. That's part of the reason why I became friends with Otto, when he said where he came from. I thought he could help us once Ollie got out..."

Tig turns his chair towards Chuckie, the hard look back on his face. "You wasting our time with this bullshit? What use is it if you don't know the exact location?"

Chuckie still looks frightened, but quietly reaches for his top pocket in response and pulls out an envelope. "I only got this yesterday from his lawyer. Ollie promised he'd take care of me if anything happened to him..."

He pauses again, and reaches forward to place the envelope on the table. Jax is the one to reach forward, as he pulls out two pieces of paper from the envelope. One is an official looking letter, the other a piece of paper with only a few words on it. He looks at the letter first and reads out the summary to the rest of the club. "In the event of Mr Oliver Sanderson's death, it was his bequest you receive the attached." Jax puts down the letter as he reads the other paper.

"What's it say?" Clay finally asks.

"Outbuilding at Red Ferne House". Jax turns the piece of paper over, a puzzled look on his face. He was hoping there would be more information on the paper, but the back of the slip is blank. "That's all."

"I couldn't find the place. I checked on the map in the office, there isn't anywhere called Red Ferne House in Charming..." adds Chuckie.

Before Clay can add anything, Jax speaks up again. "I know that name from somewhere..."

They all turn to Opie in surprise as he interrupts. "Shit! That's old man Carter's place, isn't it?" He looks at Jax as if he knew he what he was talking about.

Jax has a sudden look of understanding. "Where were we used to go apple-scrumping when we were kids?"

Opie smiles as he recalls the memory. "Crazy old man scared the fuck out of us when he came out from the house with that shotgun..."

But it is Clay who interrupts next. "Shit, I think I know where that place is. Old man Carter's place was just out by the old Jefferson road. We used to take our bikes up there when we first started out in Charming; it was a pretty good track. Very isolated, from what I remember..."

Jax responds with what he remembered about the place. "The main house was one of those 1960's mansions; the land must be ten acres at least. There were some old woods behind the main house. Lot of outbuildings, too. I think most people have forgotten the land's there, since the Interstate was built..."

"You think the owner would do some sort of deal? Let us search the place?" asks Bobby.

"I'd heard the old man finally died about eighteen months ago" interupts Opie.

"Definitely worth checking out, then" comments Clay.

Clay suddenly realises that the mood in the room had improved. His eye falls on Chuckie, who is fidgeting where he is standing. "The club appreciates you bringing this info to us, Chuckie. You won't lose out on this if this turns out well, I promise..."

Chuckie produces a grin when he realises that was as near a thank-you as he was ever going to get from the President of SAMCRO. However, when Clay remains quiet and raises his eyebrow, it suddenly dawns on him that it was time to leave. He hurriedly turns round, opens the door and silently leaves.

Clay turns back to the table, but before he can start giving out further orders it is Jax who speaks up. "I think we should be careful on this, Clay..."

Clay doesn't respond but waits for his step-son to elaborate.

"We don't know who owns the land, or if the old man did croak. Or if anybody lives there now. It'll take some time to search all those buildings, and right now the last thing we need is to get caught for trespassing" he states.

"I could check Probate" suggests Juice. "Do some research, see who the current owner is and see if anybody's living there now..."

"That's a plan, then" adds Clay. "I'd still like to keep our options open, though. If this doesn't pan out then we may still need another gun source. You've all got jobs to do, let's get on with it. Meeting adjourned." He bangs the gavel and the crew start to clear out of the room.

All except Tig; who normally stayed behind after the meeting to catch up with Clay. Clay sits back in his chair, lighting up his cigar. The meeting had gone better than expected, and cigars were one of the things he'd missed most in prison.

"Chuckie had better not be pulling a fast one on us" states Tig.

Clay finds a smile cross his face. "Nah, he's not wily enough for something like this. Besides, Chuckie's always so damn happy hanging around here..."

Tig doesn't respond as he begins to get out of his chair. But Clay has some business he needed to speak to Tig about first. "I was gonna bring up Kozik's patch-in at the next meeting. He helped out while we were all inside..."

He looks up at Tig, and realises that he shouldn't have bothered when he notices the huge and very evil grin across his Sergeant-at-Arms face. The type of grin that did not bode well for Kozik.

"You never said what was wrong between you two. Was it about a woman?" asks Clay, curiosity in his voice.

Alex "Tig" Trager saunters out as he has the last word. "No, definitely not a woman. It's a waste of time, Clay. I'll be dead and buried before that prick gets patched-in..."

Clay leans back and blows out smoke from his cigar. Definitely one of those days...

Result

The following day...

Jax sits at one of the benches outside the club, a beer in his hand. Opie sits silently next to him, as they wait for Clay who has just got in on his bike. Tig appears from the doorway to the garage and follows Clay as they approach the younger men.

"Any luck?" asks Clay, as he leans forward against the bench. Tig quietly stands behind his boss, in his usual protective stance.

"Bobby didn't come up with anything from the Charters... " confirms Jax.

"Shit! That only leaves Happy or Chuckie's leads..." adds Tig.

"Talking about Happy..." Opie advises, as he looks over Clay's shoulder. Clay and Tig both turn around to see Happy approaching with Juice walking beside him. Juice has a load of paperwork in his hand.

Happy is the first to speak. "I've still got a couple of calls in, but nothing so far. ATF have been hitting people hard round here the last few months; nobody wants to sell..."

"Must be the new ATF guy that replaced Stahl?" suggests Jax.

Clay ignores him as he glances at Juice, and waits for his report. Juice looks down at the paperwork as though checking something first, but then looks back up. "Opie heard right, old Mr Carter died about year and a half back. The lawyer's finally found someone to inherit six months ago..."

"Who?" asks Clay.

"The only living relative is the widow of a distant cousin, who was living in L.A. She successfully claimed probate and moved into the house soon after..."

"And you know this how?" enquires Jax.

Juice offers a sheepish grin. "Old girlfriend of mine works for the lawyer who dealt with the paperwork. Got a copy of everything here..."

"So what did you have to do to get the info from her?" asks Opie, a grin on his face.

Juice tries to put on a dead-pan look, but ends up smirking in response. "The things I do for this club..."

Tig interrupts "Cute, was she?"

"I never kiss and tell, Tig..." Juice responds.

Clay shakes his head in exasperation, but was actually glad to hear some camaraderie between his crew.

"What now?" asks Happy, as he moves to sit opposite Jax and Opie on the bench.

"We need to take a good look round that property..." Opie offers his opinion.

It goes quiet for a moment, until Jax speaks up. He directs his question to Juice. "You get a name for the new owner?"

Clay looks closely at Jax, and has a feeling that a plan was beginning to form. A brief smile crosses his face.

Juice looks back at the paperwork again. "No, only the husband's name. A Colonel Mark Hunter..."

Jax looks up with a thoughtful look on his face. "Some old biddy owns the place, then. If she was married to a Colonel..."

"Old biddy's can be more trouble sometimes than young ones" adds Happy. When the others look at him as if waiting for further enlightenment, he shrugs as if it was a long story.

"Ethel said it was odd, though..." Juice pauses as he hears Tig snigger as he mumbles "Ethel!" under his breath. He doesn't notice the cheesy grin on Happy's face either. Even Jax and Opie have a hard time keeping a straight face.

Juice ignores them as he continues. "... normally claiming Probate means you have to provide all sort of information. Date of birth, name, marriage certificate, social security number, virtually your life history. Eth ... my friend said it was all done through some classy and expensive lawyer and there wasn't even a name for the old girl on the paperwork. Even the keys to the property were picked up by courier..."

"So we have no idea who she is, apart from being a widow to a Colonel Hunter?" adds Clay. He is still watching the thoughtful look on Jax's face, as if waiting for something. Jax suddenly looks up his step-father with a grin on his face.

"It's enough that we can go visit." He notices the puzzled look on Clay's face. "You still got your new suit from your parole hearing?"

Clay seems taken aback, but nods. "You got a plan?"

"How do you feel about a temporary change in career?"

The 'Old Biddy'

It is a couple of hours later, as Jax and Clay drive down Jefferson Road towards the house in the club's best van. Jax was keeping the speed down as the road was not well-maintained, and the van's suspension was taking a hell of a beating from the pot-holes.

Clay finds himself once again fingering the tie around his neck, feeling uncomfortable in the get-up he was in. He was in his new suit and tie. Gemma had even made him have a close shave to make him more presentable, when she'd heard the plan. Jax was also in his best suit, recently shaved, and even had on a pair of glasses that gave him a debonair appearance. His normally loose and ragged hair was tightly tied back in a ponytail.

"Remind me again why we're doing this?" asks Clay.

Jax offers a smile as he briefly looks sideways at his step-father. "We're pretending to be land agents, remember? I think we're the only ones who could pull this off without looking intimidating..."

"Point taken. I can't see Tig or Happy looking anything but dangerous in this get up." Clays finds his hand once again pulling at the tie. It suddenly dawns on him that the rings on his fingers were a dead giveaway, and begins to pull them off and put them in his suit pocket.

"Plus there's always the old Morrow charm, Clay. I wouldn't admit this to mom, but you can really sweet-talk the women when you want to..." Jax smirks.

"Yeah, well, I'm sure between us we can convince the old biddy to let us take a look around... There's always that old Teller charm, too..." adds Clay.

Jax grins in response. "There's a clipboard down the side of your seat" he advises.

Clay reaches down, and finds the clipboard. There are several blank forms from the garage attached to it, but it is the business card clipped to the corner that makes him return Jax's smile. "Hale Property Services?"

"Knew that card would come in useful one day. What names we going under?" asks Jax.

"How about you being Mr Laroy and I'll be a Mr Alvarez?" suggests Clay.

"Like it!" grins Jax. He begins to slow up the car, and peers out as if trying to find a turning. "It's up here somewhere".

Clay points toward a rusty and broken sign just ahead of them that reads "Red Fe...". The turning is just behind the sign, but the area is overgrown with bushes and trees. Jax carefully turns into the left-hand turn, and they both stay silent as he makes his way down an even worse track than the main road. The trees on either side of the track are tall and old and don't offer much of a view ahead. Eventually they see the slated roof of a large red-brick house in the distance.

As they approach the main house, Jax brings the van to a crawl. The track leads to a dead end in front of a two-storey house with a front veranda. The house has obviously seen better days, the paint is peeling and the windows and doors are flaking. However, it still looks an elegant and solid house. In the distance Clay notices there are some sheds and outbuildings, but the area in front of the house and the path leading to the other buildings is overgrown with bushes and weeds. The gravel on the driveway is uneven and has pot holes in it. However, it does look as though someone has tried to cut the worst of the bushes back.

At one end of the drive there is a black circle and a pile of ashes, as if someone had lit a large bonfire recently. Towards one side is a large pile of moss-covered logs leaning up against an old garden wall. The pile reaches almost three metres up and five metres across, and there is enough wood to last a couple of years.

On the grass area in front of the house is a large but old silver trailer, standing at an eighty degree angle so the end is almost touching the house. Jax can just make out the front end of a pick-up truck parked up behind the caravan. The door at the front of the caravan is closed, and in front are two sets of old garden tables and chairs. One of the tables has a half-full water bottle sitting on it.

Jax pulls up and parks the van just at the end of what was once the driveway. He and Clay get out and head towards the open front door of the house, the gravel crunching underneath their feet. The doorway is dark and they can't seem very far into the house. They both stop before the veranda and Clay decides to call out "Hello, anybody there?"

There is nothing but silence.

He exchanges a look with Jax, who just shrugs his shoulders. Clay takes a pace towards the steps leading up to the veranda with Jax behind him. But they both jump and quickly turn around when they hear a female voice from behind him.

"Can I help you gentlemen with something?" The tone is polite but cautious.

Both Clay and Jax are taken aback at the woman who seems to have appeared silently out of nowhere. She is walking up to them from behind the furthest end of the caravan, as she pulls off garden gloves from her hands.

Jax is too busy admiring the woman in front of them to realise that she had made very little noise as she walked on the uneven gravel that was surrounding most of the house. The way she walked was like a cat, sinuous but graceful. She comes to a halt by one of the tables, as she quickly puts down the gloves. She slips her right hand behind her in a casual way, as if hooking her right hand into her jean's back pocket was a regular habit.

Even Clay had a hard time getting over his astonishment. The young woman was tall, maybe five feet nine. Thin but with curves in all the right places; shown off by the tight jeans and a sleeveless but long plain gray tee-shirt she wore over her jeans. The ugly combat boots on her feet spoilt the image slightly. A tat stood out on her right forearm, but neither of them could see what it was clearly. Some sort of dagger surrounded by a diamond shape.

Her dark blond, long hair was pulled back haphazardly from her face into a pony tail. Her face was heart-shaped, and could easily have made the front page of a modelling magazine. She had unblemished skin and a healthy look, and lips that looked like they could be very kissable. The eyes that stared at him and Clay were a very pretty and exotic green under the long lashes. There was a sharp glint in her eyes; that reminded Clay of how Tig looked out at the world with that piercing gaze of his.

She was definitely not the old woman they were looking for, maybe someone in her early thirties. It dawned on Jax that very few of the women that were always hanging around the club could match this very beautiful and stunning woman.

It is Clay that recovers first. "We're looking for a Mrs Hunter? Widow to Colonel Mark Hunter?"

"That's me" advises the woman. Her voice is neutral, not giving away any accent or emotion.

Clay and Jax exchange a surprised look. Jax steps forward with a smile on his face, his hand out ready to shake and a twinkle in his eye. Even a striking and gorgeous woman would not very often faze him. However, he comes to halt as the woman warily takes a step back from him and keeps the garden table between them.

"I'm Mr Laroy and this is Mr Alvarez" advises Jax "We're from Hale Property Services. We're looking into buying land in this area for future development and wondering if we could take a look around your property..."

The woman takes a long look at Jax and Clay. Jax can't shake the feeling that she is making some sort of assessment of the two of them.

"Got any I.D.?" she asks.

Jax turns to Clay, who has the clipboard in his hand. He pulls out the card and offers it to the woman across the table. She nods towards the garden table between them, as if reluctant to take anything from him. Clay puts the card down on the table, and is unable to hide the baffled look on his face.

"Our company card, ma'am..." advises Clay.

"Cards can be faked" she immediately responds. She puts her left hand into her left pocket, and pulls out a cell phone one-handed. "There somebody I can ring to confirm who you are?"

Jax and Clay trade an uneasy glance. This was not the way the plan was meant to go. When Jax looks back at the woman, he gets the intense feeling that the exchange had been noticed.

It is Clay that steps in. "I'm afraid our offices are closed on Tuesday afternoons, Mrs Hunter. Perhaps we could take a look around just today to get an idea of what price we could offer, and we could get our office to ring you tomorrow..."

She interrupts him. "No."

"Sorry?" queries Jax, before he could stop himself.

"You can't look around and I'm not interested in selling" she responds. The voice was still polite but brooked no arguments.

"I'm sure that we can make you a really good deal, Mrs Hunter..." Jax jumps in.

She cuts in again "How did you find out my husband's name?"

Jax notices the slightly harder tone to her voice. It began to dawn on him that this woman had somehow figured out that he and Clay weren't what they appeared to be. But it was not the first time he had been put in a difficult position. "A matter of public record, ma'am. Our company likes to know who they are dealing with..."

As he is talking, the woman looks Jax up and down before tilting her head to one side in thought. For some very odd reason, Jax knew that the there was no sexual context to the look. It was more like being sized up for something...

"I don't know who sent you gentlemen, and I don't want to know. But I think it best if you leave right now." The tone was still determined but courteous.

Clay and Jax are not sure to make of this comment. Jax again looks to Clay, seemingly at a loss.

Clay offers her a winning smile as he takes a step forward, and it dawns on Jax he was trying his best to put on the old Morrow-charm. "No need to be hostile, Mrs Hunter. We're only here to do business..." The woman takes no notice of him, and blatantly ignores his smile. She looks between the two of them, as if trying to make a decision.

Jax decides he needs to help Clay out, who was obviously beginning to falter. "Perhaps we could make an appointment to come back another time? I'm sure our company could make it worth your time to at least listen to our proposal..."

The young woman takes a step forward so she can look straight into Jax's eyes, but still keeping the table between them. Her eyes turn hard and it is the first time in his life that Jax feels almost threatened by a woman. Except maybe for his mother.

"This is private property. Leave. Now." The tone of her voice had completely changed. There was a dangerous edge that made Jax's stomach turn over.

Jax offers her an uneasy smile. He turns his head towards Clay, as if seeking support from his step-father. The look he exchanges with him confirms that Clay didn't know what to do next either. Clay's face suddenly changes to shock as he happens to look back at the woman first. "Shit!"

Jax quickly turns around, and finds he is looking down a pointed gun. A modern but small semi-automatic that was held in the young woman's right hand; and was pointed blatantly at his chest. The woman held the gun steadily and with confidence, as if she didn't need to hold it with both hands as most women usually did. Jax was expecting the woman's face to show she was crazy or just plain pissed. But the woman seemed perfectly calm and relaxed, and her left hand still held her cell phone.

"You have thirty seconds to get off my property. Tell whoever sent you; that I'm to be left alone. You come back then I start shooting" the young woman states.

Jax takes a wary step back, and raises his hands. "There really is no need for this, ma'am. We're just doing our jobs..." Clay is also slowly backing away towards their van as he raises his own hands, and drops the clipboard to the ground. Jax cursed himself for not thinking of carrying any weapons or even leaving something in the van. How the hell was he to know this was going to happen?

"Are you gentlemen retarded or something? What part of leave **now** do you not understand?" her voice starts to sound irritated.

Before Jax can respond, she moves fast. She fires a short burst before Clay's feet, as he jumps back in surprise and dirt and gravel flies in the air. The gun quickly returns to pointing at Jax before he can take any action.

Jax finds himself backing away as fast as he could. He can hear the sound of someone running on the gravel, and realises Clay had already turned round and headed back to the van. It suddenly dawns on him that he needed to high-tail it.

"Jax, get the fuck out of there!" shouts Clay from behind him.

Jax hesitates for a moment, feeling that he did not want to give this up so easily. He was also uncertain about turning his back to the woman and the gun still pointed at him. However, he is not sure how near behind him the van actually is. For a moment his eyes lock with the young woman's. She offers a cold smile that sends goose bumps up his arm. She raises her eyebrow, before nodding slightly as if to tell Jax that he could turn around and leave.

Jax twists around, to find the van only a few feet behind him. Clay was sitting in the driver's seat, having already opened the passenger door for him and just turning over the engine. With an itch on his back as he somehow knew the gun was still pointed at him, Jax hastily runs forward and jumps in. As he closes the door, Clay has already gunned the vehicle into reverse and the tyres screech as he pulls back and hits the brakes. He swerves the vehicle around, with the gravel flying everywhere. The van rotates 180-degrees, and then Clay hits the gas and the van leaps forward down the track leading to the house.

Behind, them the woman calmly flips open the cell phone as she presses a button and takes a couple of photo's at the hastily retreating van. The gun in her right hand still remains steadily aimed at the vehicle, until it has disappeared into the distance.

Jax hastily hangs onto the handle above the passenger door, as Clay bombs down the track at a dangerous speed. He hadn't had time to put on his seatbelt, but quickly looks out at the wing mirror to see if the woman was following them. All he could see was bushes and the view from the house was blocked.

"Crazy fucking bitch!" Clay exclaims.

"Clay, slow down, or we'll end up in a ditch!" Jax find's his heart drumming in his chest from what had just happened. He feels panic when he notices the junction that leads to the main road coming up fast.

However, the van begins to slow down as Jax realises Clay had heard him. The van finally comes to a sudden stop just before the junction, as Clay puts his foot on the brake. Jax looks over at Clay, who is hunched over the steering, his hands clenched tightly onto the wheel. For a moment there is silence, apart from the sound of the engine which is roaring in protest at its recent treatment.

"Well, that didn't go too well..." states Jax, trying to keep his voice calm.

Clay turns his head, an angry look on his face. "Jesus-h-Christ!" swears Clay. Jax is surprised; it took a hell of a lot to alarm his step-father. Clay slowly unclenches his hands from the wheel, and finds his hands shaking. He grips them as if trying to get hold of himself. Jax notices but doesn't say anything.

"That is seriously one really pissed-off woman..." states Jax, as he reaches automatically for his jacket pocket. He realises he hadn't moved his cigarettes from his jacket to his suit and sighs. He really wanted a cigarette, but another thought suddenly hits him "Where the fuck did she get that gun!"

Clay finally seems to calm down as he leans back into the driver's seat. "I saw her pull the gun out from the behind her. She must have it tucked in her belt and her right hand on it the whole bloody time we were talking..."

Jax's brow furrows as he tries to make sense of what had just happened. He takes off the glasses he still has on and throws them onto the dashboard. "If I didn't know any better, I'd swear she knew exactly what she was doing. Like she was expecting us..."

Clay finds himself offering a nervous laugh in response. It seems to break the tense atmosphere. "Yeah, I got that. Like she didn't believe one word we said right from the start..."

"You think she's hiding something? Or maybe hiding from someone?" queries Jax.

"Who gives a fuck!" responds Clay. Jax realises that Clay's near-fright had started to make him mean and angry.

"What if she found the stock of gun's..." muses Jax.

Clay seems to take a moment to think. "Maybe. But if she'd tried to move them on the market, we'd have heard about it. I think you're right, she's just one really mixed-up psycho-bitch!"

Clay reaches forward to put the van back in gear, and starts to drive again. He pulls out slowly but there is no oncoming traffic on the main road.

"Maybe we should..." starts Jax.

"Not now!" interrupts Clay sharply. "Right now I need to think. And I really need a drink and a cigar..." Both of them remain silent on the way back to the garage.

In the meantime, the woman has disappeared from outside of the house. The clipboard Clay had been carrying was carefully placed on one of the tables. The door to the caravan suddenly opens, and she walks out with a make-up brush in her hand and a compact full of black powder. She steps up to the clipboard, and spills the powder over the board before brushing it away with the brush. She pulls out her cell phone and takes a couple of close-up photographs. It was done quickly and efficiently, as if she had done this before.

Now she had a photograph of the van's number and a copy of her visitor's fingerprints...

Wrong decision

Gemma Teller-Morrow was working in the garage office, when she hears the screech of tyres from outside. She looks out of the office window, and is surprised to see the van that Clay and Jax had taken, returning so early. It is with further surprise that she notices Clay get out of the vehicle with an angry look on his face. He slams the door shut, and he and Jax exchange words. She is too far away to hear what is said, but Clay stalks off towards the club. Jax appears to sigh before hurriedly following after him.

Gemma walks out of the office, curiosity on her face as to what had happened. She notices Tig approach from the nearby garage, as if he was going to talk to Clay. But Clay virtually pushes past him as he heads for the bar in the club with Jax still following. Gemma begins to notice the thoughtful look across her son's face. She and Tig exchange a baffled glance before following them into the club.

Gemma and Tig walk in, to see that Jax and Clay are both standing at the bar. One of the prospects is hurriedly pouring them a couple of strong drinks of whisky, whilst Clay pulls off his tie and throws it onto a nearby chair. Juice and Happy happen to be in the bar, and look on in curiosity.

"I take it that it didn't go well with the old lady?" asks Gemma. Just at that moment, Clay had taken a long gulp of his drink but spews it straight out. He starts coughing, and Jax turns around as he hurriedly slaps Clay on the back. His gaze meets his mother's, and Gemma is not sure to make of the look her gives her. It was almost as if he was embarrassed. And it dawns on her that it was unusual for Jax to drink anything strong during the day, so something must have disturbed him. A perplexed look crosses her face.

Tig saunters past her up to where Jax and Clay are propped against the bar, an amused grin on his face. He'd already noticed the irate look on Clay's face and had assumed that the two of them had run into some-sort of trouble. He turns to Gemma, as if explaining something. "I can just imagine it now. The old biddy probably ran the two of them off with a shotgun, just like in the movies. And you two ran off with your tails between your legs..."

Clay just glared at him, as he recovers from his coughing fit. He turns back to bar and reaches for his glass of whisky, but before taking another gulp of his drink he mumbles to himself "Insane fucking whore!"

Tig turns to Jax in surprise, as if looking for an explanation. He is surprised to see a bemused grin cross Jax's face. "Try replacing that with a semi-automatic and the woman about thirty and looking like a super-model and you'd be nearer the mark..."

"You're kidding!" interrupts Juice, as he and Happy walk over to find out what is going on. Tig looks completely taken aback, whilst Gemma looks worriedly at Clay. It was very unlike him to swear so profoundly; and it suddenly dawns on her that he was more than just angry. He was furious, and she steps forward and starts to rub his back as if to calm him down. Jax turns back to the bar to finish his own drink

"You want me to go talk to her; woman to woman..." suggests Gemma.

Jax and Clay turn around together to face her. "No!" they both bark. Gemma is too surprised to say anything, and drops her hand away from Clay.

"She can't be that bad..." adds Tig. It suddenly dawns on him that this was no longer entertaining.

He steps back when Clay angrily turns towards him. They exchange a silent look, but it is Tig who finally looks away when he realises that Clay was really, really pissed. You could have heard a pin drop in the silence that falls over the bar for the next few seconds.

"I have a real bad feeling about all this, Clay. We still don't know if the guns are actually on the property. I think we should just give it up..." suggests Jax to Clay. The other's all look on in astonishment.

Clay takes a deep breath, as if trying to calm himself down. "No, we need those weapons. The bitch was definitely hiding something, and it wouldn't surprise me if the guns are still there. I'm not giving up on a quarter-mill that's there for the taking..."

It is Happy that interrupts. "I'll get some of the boys together. We could go in heavy-handed..."

"You want to all to go back to prison for trespassing and assault? You're still on parole, remember?" Gemma responds. "We just need to be clever on this..."

Clay turns to Gemma, his eyebrow raised. It suddenly dawns on her that this was something the club needed to take care of without her interference, so she turns to leave. But not before adding one more comment "This ... woman ... can't stay on that property forever. You just need to choose your moment to go take a look around..."

Jax turns to Clay, and notices the look on his step-fathers face. As if he was already putting a plan in motion. "You're plan didn't work, Jax. So we're doing this my way." He suddenly turns to Ortiz "Juice, I want everything you can find on that bloody woman and her husband..."

"It'll be difficult if I don't know her full name, Clay..." responds Juice. He pauses as he sees the non-argumentative look on Clay's face.

"There has to be land records, she pays taxes just like everyone else" barks Clay. "Check to see if there's a vehicle registered at the address, tax records, anything!"

"Also check with all the local merchants..." adds Jax "... if she's ever ordered anything. There must be a name if she had a delivery. If she paid by card or check we can trace it..."

"Do you know how long that will take?" bemoans Juice.

Clay's voice is dangerous. "Then you'd better get started! Take the prospects and Chuckie if you need help!"

Juice nods towards the prospect still standing behind the bar, and they both hurriedly head out of the club. Clay was definitely not in the mood for any disagreement with his orders. Clay turns towards Happy and Tig. "I want the place watched! The minute she moves off that property, I want to know. Got it!"

Happy and Tig exchange glances, but before they can respond Jax interrupts. "I think there's a turn-off further up the road that leads to a ridge overlooking the house. You should be able to set up surveillance from their..."

"Just us, or can we get help from the boys?" asks Happy.

Clay realises it is a genuine question, and that his head is beginning to clear from his anger. "Use Kozik and Chibs and work in shifts..."

"Me and Opie will take a shift too" adds Jax.

Clay looks at Jax in surprise. His step-son offers him a discomfited smile. "Gotta admit I'm starting to get curious. I'd like to be around to search the place once she heads off the property; maybe find out more about her..."

"She might not leave, Clay, you do know that?" admits Tig. He was waiting for Clay to bite his head off at the question, but Clay understands that Tig is trying to smooth his ruffled feathers.

"We still have till the end of next week to trade those guns to the Niners. She has to go get groceries and supplies..." guesses Clay.

Happy cheerfully slaps Tig on the back as they both turn around to leave. "Think of it this way, Tig. Can't be that bad a gig watching a pretty woman..."

Tig briefly turns around and asks Jax "Was she hot?"

Jax smiles at the memory. "Crazy-hot, Tig. Just your type..."

Clay frowns as he adds "If you want your balls handed to you on a plate."

Tig grins as he and Happy walk away. Jax and Clay both lean back on the bar, as if taking a minute to catch their breath.

"Let's hope she does leave at some point, so we can take a good look around. But what if she stays put?" asks Jax.

"We'll give it a few days, first" suggests Clay. "I'd like to know more about this Mrs Hunter, before we start looking at alternatives."

It goes quiet between them for a moment. Clay has a thoughtful look on his face as his brain finally starts to move into gear following the day's events. "Did you make any sense out of what she said? Something about someone having sent us?"

"Yeah, I've been thinking about that. I got the impression she doesn't want to be found. Maybe she is hiding from someone. If we could find out who, we could use it as leverage..."

They both turn back around towards the bar in comradeship, and Clay reaches for the bottle of whisky to take a refill. Jax is totally surprised when Clay suddenly laughs. "She was pretty hot, though..."

"Don't let mom hear you say that..." responds Jax. Actually, he was thinking the same thing himself.

Surveillance

It had been three days since Clay had instructed Happy and Tig to start watching Red Ferne House. They'd found a spot on the ridge overlooking the house and caravan, and had made themselves comfortable. Just below the top of the ridge, there were a couple of deckchairs laid out in a small clearing surrounded by some trees. There was a fold-away picnic table and a large cooler full of beer, water bottles and sandwiches placed underneath. The picnic table held their guns which Clay had insisted they take with them. They had also been told to leave their "cuts" back at the clubhouse.

It was Happy's turn to use the binoculars set up on a tripod; that was hidden between two trees where they had a good view of the house and the caravan. He sat forward on one of the bar stools taken from the club, as he looked through the lenses of the binoculars. It was hot, so he had a bandana wrapped around his head. Tig was laid back in one of the deckchairs with his tee-shirt off and his sunglasses on; soaking up the sun.

There was the crack of a twig being snapped as if someone was approaching the clearing, but neither of them jumped up. It was time for the change of shift, and they were expecting company. Tig lazily opens his eyes as he looks out towards the path that led into the clearing. They'd found a place to park up a couple of vans the first day, that was out of sight of the main road. There was an old trail that led to the clearing that had been overgrown, but it hadn't taken much to cut the bushes back.

Tig is puzzled that Kozik is accompanied by Juice instead of Chibs. Both of them also had left their jackets behind, and Juice has a cooler in his hand full of further refreshments. Tig sits up in his deckchair as the two men walk into the clearing.

"Afternoon, guys" smiles Juice.

Happy just turns around to silently acknowledge them before turning back to the binoculars.

"I thought Chib's was covering this afternoon?" asks Tig.

Juice swaps a look with Kozik, who grins, "I volunteered..." He steps forward to put the cooler in his hand by the picnic table.

"He's hiding from Clay..." smirks Kozik.

Tig raises his eyebrow at Juice, who looks a little irked. "He's not happy with me right now. I couldn't come up with anything on the woman..."

"We've nicknamed her 'the hottie'" states Happy, without turning around.

"Did you not even get her first name?" asks Tig, annoyance in his voice.

Juice sits himself down in the other deckchair, and sighs. "Nope. I tried everything. The only time she's bought anything from the merchants in Charming is for cash. Mrs Hunter apparently buy's groceries once a week, usually on different days. All taxes and registrations are via a corporation based in the Caymans, and anything else is dealt with the same expensive lawyer in L.A. that handled the probate."

As he is talking, it is only Kozik who notices that Happy has turned around with an unusually thoughtful look on his face. Kozik moves to sit warily on the low picnic table, making sure it would not collapse under his weight.

"The only info I could get was for her husband. Older than her, I guess. He was aged fifty-one when he died, and was a Colonel in the Rangers. I'm still waiting back for a contact of mine to see if he could get hold of his military record..." Juice pauses as if in embarrassment. He'd spent eighteen hours a day working on this for the last two days, and had got exactly nowhere. It had become frustrating, and Clay had definitely not been impressed.

"A name" mumbles Tig. "I'd really like to know her name".

Juice shrugs, as if he couldn't offer any more information. "It's like she doesn't exist at all..."

It goes quiet between them, until Happy suddenly speaks up. "Wit-Pro." He gets up from sitting near the binoculars, stretches, and then walks over to his colleagues.

Kozik and Tig exchange a look, before looking back at Happy. "Witness protection? You sure, man..." comments Tig.

"Happy would be the one to know" adds Juice as he looks up at the three of them with astonishment on his face.

"Could be the reason why you can't find anything about Miss Hottie. She might be living under an alias..." explains Happy. Tig grins at Happy's personal version of the nick-name that they had applied to the woman they were observing.

"I'm not so sure..." butts in Kozik. Tig gives him an irritated look at his interruption. "... Clay and Jax obviously spooked her. If she was in wit-pro she would have made some calls; and this place would be crawling with feds by now."

"Or maybe she just thinks she can take care of herself..." adds Happy. Tig and Juice exchange a puzzled glance. They both knew him well enough to pick up on the note of almost-admiration in Happy's voice. He looks nonchalant as he heads towards the picnic table, to pick up his gun and put it away in the holster he has over his tee-shirt.

"You don't think she knew who Jax and Clay were, do you?" asks Juice. "I mean, that they're from the club?"

"Doubt it" adds Tig. "If she doesn't socialise or have friends in Charming then she wouldn't know about SAMCRO. But you might be right about wit-pro, Happy. Would you let Clay know?" Happy nods as if in acknowledgement.

Juice looks at him with a perplexed look. He was not sure why Tig would not want to impart this news to Clay himself, until Happy adds "Tig's decided to stay for the rest of the day."

Kozik doesn't look happy at this news. Juice lifts his eyebrow to Happy, who offers a grin. "He thinks she's cute..."

"Nah, he just gets his off's from being a pervert and watching her." adds Kozik. Tig glowers at him, but stays quiet.

Happy picks up the empty cooler, as he begins to leave the clearing. "See you later. Just watch yourselves, boys..." he admonishers. He disappears into the undergrowth.

Juice looks back at Tig, as if in question. "Happy's been twitchy all morning. He said he had the weirdest feeling that he was being watched..." advises Tig.

Juice is not sure what to say to that. Kozik decides it his turn to take the first watch, and moves up to take the place that Happy has just vacated. Tig leans back into the deckchair.

Juice, however, is finding he is fidgeting. He's never been on a stakeout and was curious. "You've been watching the last few days. Surely you know something else about this ... Miss Hottie? What she does down there..." he asks.

"Early riser..." states Kozik.

"... likes to go running in the woods in the mornings..." adds Tig.

"... after some exercises." Kozik turns around and Juice is surprised to see the two of them swap a leer.

"Exercises?" queries Juice.

"Tai-Chi or something..." informs Kozik with a grin on his face "... to rock music. She's got some very supple moves."

"Nope, Happy said it was more like some sort of martial arts" adds Tig.

"That I'd like to see!" comments Juice.

It goes quiet for a few minutes, before Juice adds. "Clay said to let him know the minute she's off the property. He wants her followed, and delayed as long as possible. Slash her tyres or something. Then he'll call in everyone to take a good look around those outbuildings..."

He pauses when he sees the guilty look exchanged between Kozik and Tig. "Okay, guys. What did you do?" he asks.

"We had the first shift yesterday when she went for her morning run" admits Kozik.

Realisation crosses Juice's face. "You went to take a look! Clay'll kill you if he finds out!"

"Not gonna tell him are you, Juice?" Tig's voice is threatening.

"Shit, no! He's pissed enough at me already. So, which one of you was it?" He looks from Kozik to Tig and back again. Tig looks away.

"What did you find?" asks Juice in curiosity.

"Not much. Caravan door was locked, but she's got a few boxes packed in there. Front door to the house was unlocked, but the place is piled high full of crap that must have been in there for years. Newspapers, boxes, you name it. Looks like old-man Carter was a hoarder..." advises Tig.

"She spends the afternoons and early evenings clearing all the stuff out from the house. Most of it she puts on a bonfire..." informs Kozik.

"Anything else?" Juice asks Tig.

"Nah, she's got an old pick-up parked round the side. I was gonna pop the lock to the caravan when Kozik noticed her coming back from her run earlier than normal. Had to high-tail it outta there..." adds Tig.

"I'd like in on this, guys. Maybe we could try and take a look again tomorrow, when she goes running. I could be lookout?" suggests Juice. "I'll volunteer again for the morning shift."

Kozik looks across at Tig, exasperation showing on his face. "Now you've got him at it, too..."

"What!" explains Juice.

Tig just looks blasé, as if it was not Juice's business.

"She's got him all hot and bothered" states Kozik, nodding towards Tig. "He likes a woman with mystery..."

"What pussy doesn't Tig like!" adds Juice, as he settles back into the deckchair.

Kozik turns back to the binoculars with a smirk on his face.

Neither of them notices the sudden change across Tig's face as he leans back into the deckchair. Like he was distressed at their comment. He rubs his hand across his face, as if in thought. He was sick-to-death of it. Tired that everyone thought he would screw anything that moved. Since getting out of Stockton, he'd gotten weary of the same-old routine. He'd found himself hating the women he fooled around with; nothing but bimbo's and whores.

He may have also had the companionship of the brothers in the club, but it wasn't enough anymore. Nor was being Clay's Sergeant-at-Arms the responsibility he wanted any longer. It had come as a revelation and a shock when he had finally understood there was more to life than SAMCRO. That there was something missing in his life, but he had not as yet figured out what it was...

Hunted

It was cooler as the late afternoon approached. Juice was on binocular duty, whilst Tig and Kozik were lying in the deckchairs. Tig was reading some dodgy magazine (he had put his tee-shirt back on when Kozik had made a rude comment about having to look at his flabby body). Kozik has his eyes closed as he listens to music on his I-Pod. Juice gets up and stretches and decides he needs to exercise his legs. He heads towards the picnic table, opens the cooler and takes out a beer.

"Anything new?" asks Tig, without looking away from his magazine.

"Nah, she's been in the house the last few hours..." responds Juice. He had found out that being on a stakeout was not as exciting as he thought, and was in fact pretty boring. He is just about to take a swig of his beer, but abruptly turns around as if he hears a noise from the bushes. Like a rustling sound.

"Did you hear that?" he asks the other two.

Tig briefly looks up from his magazine, whilst Kozik just opens his eyes but stays where he is.

"What?" asks Tig, not really that interested

Juice steps towards the edge of the clearing. All he can see is the bushes leading into a stand of trees and not much beyond. "It sounded like something moving out there..."

Tig smirks. "Just the wind..."

"Nope, it's been pretty airless all afternoon" adds Kozik. He suddenly has a grin on his face as he turns his head to look at Tig. He takes off his earphones. "Cougar..."

Juice turns around with a shocked look on his face. Tig comprehends that Kozik was pulling Juice's chain, but decided to go along with the joke. "I think wolves are more common in the woods round here. There's even been a report of a panther..."

"What!" exclaims Juice. He turns back around and looks at the surrounding bushes and woodland with trepidation.

"I heard people disappear out here, once in a while..." adds Kozik.

Juice takes a step back from the clearing, a nervous look on his face. Tig suddenly sniggers, as if he couldn't keep up the joke any longer. Juice turns around to them, sudden comprehension on his face. "Very funny, guys!"

Kozik looks up at Juice. "You're such an easy target, kid" he smirks.

Juice looks disgusted, and turns back towards the stool next to the binoculars. Kozik is just about to put his earphones back on, whilst Tig begins to get out of the deckchair to get a sandwich. They pause when all three of them hear the rustling sound this time. It sounded as if it was coming from the opposite direction of the trial, some way behind a line of trees.

"You can't say you didn't hear that!" exclaims Juice, turning back to the other two. Neither of them seems particularly bothered.

"Just a squirrel or rat" advises Kozik.

"If you're so concerned, why don't you go take a look?" asks Tig, as he sits back in the deckchair, starts to eat his sandwich and goes back to reading his magazine.

Juice notices that they both still have a smirk on their faces, and it wouldn't put it past either of them to have one of their brothers turn up and try and scare the crap out of him. "You guys setting me up?"

Kozik smiles but doesn't say anything. "Too much effort..." adds Tig.

Juice looks from one of them to another. A determined look crosses his face. He puts down his beer on the cooler. "Okay, I'll go check-see. Kozik, you mind taking the watch?"

Kozik just nods. Juice hesitantly picks up the gun he had left on the table, and heads towards the bushes.

"Just scream if you find anything you don't like!" shouts out Tig.

"Thanks, Tig. I really appreciate you watching my back. You're such a great pal..." Juice responds sarcastically, as he disappears into the undergrowth.

It is fifteen minutes later when Kozik, who has taken his place at the binoculars, starts to get a little worried. He looks at his watch as he turns to Tig.

"He's been gone a while..." advises Kozik.

Tig looks up, an annoyed look on his face. "Stupid kid's probably got turned around in those trees..."

"Should we go find him?" asks Kozik

Tig shrugs as if it didn't worry him. He puts his magazine down and gets up from the deckchair. "Just give him a call on his cell. I'm not traipsing through those bushes looking for him..."

"Nah, you're right. He's probably just taking a walk. I wouldn't put it past him to stay away so we'd get worried, and get his own back on us..." responds Kozik. He raises his eyebrow as he realises Tig is heading towards the trail, in the opposite direction where Juice had gone.

"Gonna take a dump. That okay with you?" responds Tig to Kozik's silent question.

Kozik ignores him as he goes back to looking through the binoculars. He puts his earphones back on and turns up the volume. He can see that nothing is happening down at the house, and it is apparently quiet. Pity, Miss Hottie was pleasant to look at.

He feels something prick the back of his neck, and automatically thinks he'd been bitten. He slaps the back of his neck with his hand. Blackness suddenly overtakes him, and he slumps forward. He never knew what hit him.

It is another ten minutes before Tig walks back into the clearing. He is in the process of doing up his zipper, but comes to an abrupt halt. He notices Kozik lying face-down on the ground next to the binocular stand. He automatically reaches for his gun, only to realise it is still lying on the picnic table. He looks around but doesn't see anything. "Shit!" he mumbles to himself. He cautiously starts heading towards the table.

Suddenly, he feels something hard against his back. He goes completely still as he realises it feels like a gun barrel. He'd never heard the person walk up behind him, and scowls as it dawns on him that he had been completely caught out.

"I would suggest you don't move..." whispers a low and female voice from behind him.

"Wouldn't think of it, darlin'..." responds Tig. He starts to raise his right hand, but the barrel of the gun is pushed more firmly into his back. He pauses.

"Stay completely still. And I'm not your darling..." The voice has an irritated tone to it.

He feels the knife at his side being pulled out of its sheaf and dropped to the ground somewhere behind him, but stays still. However, he does react when he feels a pin prick on the side of his neck. He abruptly steps forward and turns around quickly, holding his breath that the woman wouldn't shoot. He takes a defensive stance, ready to flee or attack her.

It is the eyes that meet his that makes him stop. They had to be the prettiest and most unsettling green eyes he had ever seen. They had a steel-glint in them that held his gaze without flinching, and seemed to look into his very soul. Not many women – and not many men, for that matter – could return his own piercing blue-eyed stare like that.

Tig had found himself fascinated about the young woman he had been watching for the last few days. From his distant observation he could see she was pretty hot, just like Jax had told him. He had been mesmerised as he had watched her Tai-Chi exercises (or whatever-they-were), and Kozik had teased him pretty badly about it. In some ways he had hoped that he would get caught when he went down to the house, just to see what she was like face-to-face.

But at this moment in time this he found that being this up-close and personal to her made his body go hot. He couldn't help it; his body seemed to automatically respond to how close she was to him. Or it could just be he was reacting to the stuff she had pumped into him.

She was stunning, but he had met and screwed beautiful women before. Maybe it was the hand gun she held in her one hand and what looked like a hypodermic needle gun in the other; or the relaxed but confident stance of her body. But something in him found himself intensely attracted to this woman. Really not the time to be turned on, he thought to himself...

His vision starts to waver. He finds himself reaching forward, but his movement is sluggish and his arms feel like dead weights. The young woman takes an automatic step back with an amused look across her face. She raises an eyebrow at him, as if she was waiting for something.

He falls to his knees as sudden tiredness overtakes him. He manages to offer the woman a lopsided grin and mumbles a few words before he passes out. "Really hot..." He hits the dirt with a smile across his face.

The woman calmly and silently watches him fall to the ground. However, she has her head tilted to one side as if she couldn't fathom something. Like what on earth one of the men who had been watching her for the last three days, meant by 'really hot?' And why would he think that being caught was somehow amusing?

Crazy guy...

Caught

Tig begins to regain conscience. It takes a moment before he remembers what had happened, and instead of opening his eyes it suddenly dawns on him that he needed to stay still and figure out where he was. He keeps his eyes closed, and pretends to be still out cold.

He was lying on his front on something hard and cold. Outside, because he could feel a breeze on his forehead. He carefully tries to move his arms and legs and realised he was tied up. His hands were tied behind his back and his feet were bound up together. He can feel something warm beside him, and realises that it felt like a body. It struggles, as if trying to move about. Tig guessed it was either Kozik or Juice. He opens his mouth to try and lick his lips, but finds that although he could breathe through his nose his mouth was covered. Probably taped up...

He opens his eyes to a slit, but can't see much. It was still light, which meant it could have only been a couple of hours at the most. There was something metallic underneath him, and he could smell motor oil. He was lying down in some sort of vehicle. He tries to move his head slowly, and realises his head was sticking out on the edge of what looked like a pick-up. He could see the ground beneath the edge of the vehicle at the corner of his vision.

He suddenly hears music not far from him. Sounded like the ring-tone for a cell. Cute, it was the intro to "Female of the Species..." He quickly closes his eyes and keeps himself still, hoping that he still looked unconscious.

The music stops and he hears the same female voice from earlier. "Hi, T.J. Did you get the prints?" The woman pauses as if listening to a response. "Yeah, the ones for the other day too..." It goes quiet again. "You did? Send the info to my e-mail, could you?"

The voice sounds as if it is moving away, and then comes back again. As if the woman was pacing up and down. "I owe you on this one, T.J." Tig can hear the voice get louder, as if the woman was moving closer to his position. She pauses again, as if listening to a response. "What about I buy you lunch next time I'm in town?" she says, almost cheerfully.

It goes quiet again. "No, T.J, I'm sorry. It's not going to happen..." Tig swears blind he picks up a note of sadness in her voice. "...I'm not coming back..." she pauses again. "Hang on a minute..." It goes quiet for a few seconds. Tig almost jumps when he hears the same voice directly over where he was laying "I know you're awake."

Tig opens his eyes to gape up at the woman leaning over him from the side of the pick-up. She has her cell phone held against her chest, whilst she was talking to him. Her head is tilted to one side as she returns his stare without any trepidation. She was wearing a black t-shirt and a plain blue cap over her hair.

If Tig hadn't got a gag over his mouth, he would have smiled. They both stare at each other for few more moments. Tig felt he could stare at her like that all day. For once she starts to look uncomfortable at his gaze, until they can both hear the sound of a voice coming from the cell in her hand. She pulls her stare away, abruptly turns around and walks away as she goes back to her conversation. "Sorry?" she again pauses at the response of her caller. "No, I can handle this..."

Tig doesn't see where she has gone, as his vision is pretty limited. He tries to shift around in the back of the pick-up. His foot kicks something, and a muffled protest comes from behind him.

"Don't fuss, T.J." she says, and then there is another pause. "I told you, I don't need any help from the guys. You know perfectly well I can take care of myself. Look, I'll call you when this is all finished up, okay?" It goes quiet. Then Tig can hear the sound of the woman walking on gravel away from his position.

Tig really needed to see what was going on. He makes an effort to turn himself over, and the muffled protest is louder from behind him as he leans against the other body as leverage. He ignores it, as he tries to sit himself up. He knocks the other person in the truck a couple of times before he manages to sit up in an uncomfortable position against the side of the pick-up.

Shit, Kozik was awake and was giving him a really pissed look. He was lying face up in the middle of the truck and was tied and taped up as well. Tig can see that he was trying to get upright, but was struggling. He notices that Juice was the other person in the truck, also tied up and lying face down but totally out of it. They must have been laid up side-by-side in the truck when they were unconscious.

Tig shakes his sweaty hair away from his eyes to take good look around. Firstly, he recognises the vehicle they are all tied up in. Great, not only had the woman scuppered them like fish on a hook; but they were tied up and placed in their own bloody pick-up truck. It was parked up a few feet in front of the caravan.

He looks over to see the woman was now sitting at one of the garden tables, working over a laptop. Next to the laptop was a lying a semi-automatic, ready to pick up and use in an instant. She was totally ignoring them, even though he knew he must have made some noise as he got himself upright. On the other table sat a cardboard box, with three cell phones opened and sitting in front of it. Tig couldn't see them close enough, but figured they were the cells belonging to him and his colleagues.

He can hear Kozik grunt as he finally manages to sit himself up at the end of the truck, against the cab. Kozik offers a bewildered glance to Tig, but all he can do is shake his own head in return. Too much to explain when they couldn't talk to each other...

Tig turns his head as he hears soft footsteps approaching them. He finds himself gazing at the woman again as she steps up to the truck with a handgun in her hand. It is pointed at the two of them, but she moves to one side cautiously. She puts out her hand, and Tig and Kozik are surprised when she harmlessly reaches for Juice's neck and is obviously checking his pulse.

She turns to Tig. "I don't suppose you know if this guy has taken any kind of drugs recently?" she asks. Tig offers her a bewildered look but doesn't shake or nod his head. She shifts her gaze to Kozik "You?" she asks.

Kozik mutters underneath his gag. Tig knew he was swearing, and the woman sighs in response.

"The thing is that the stuff I gave him doesn't react to well if he's taken anything in the last twelve hours. Especially any type of stimulant..." she explains.

Kozik carries on mumbling (probably still swearing) at her. Tig could see he was really hacked off. He was starting to feel that way himself, but understood there wasn't much he could do to change the situation. He turns towards the young woman and goes back to staring at her. As the silence continues between them, he finds himself wiggling his eyebrows. He peers down to the gag around his mouth. She seems to understand that he wanted to talk to her.

She cautiously steps forward so she is closer to the end of the pick-up. "You going to give me any trouble, Mr Trager?" she asks. Tig knew surprise showed on his face that she knew his name. He shakes his head vehemently.

She steps up to the vehicle, but does not lean forward across the pick-up. It was almost as if she knew the two men might take advantage of the situation, if she got too close. Instead, she suddenly moves up so that she is standing beside the vehicle and right behind him where he leant up against the side. He feels a cold sweat across his forehead as he finds the weapon in her hand placed against the back of his head. He goes still as her other hand reaches over his shoulder and she quickly pulls off the tape across his mouth. He winces as it pulls off some skin as well as some of his beard.

The feeling of the gun then disappears, and she moves back to stand at the end of the pick-up. She looks the two men over for a moment, and silently tucks gun away into the belt of her jeans as if she realised neither of them could attack her.

"Like to know where you got my name from, sweetie..." croaks Tig. He finds his voice is hoarse from the drug she'd used earlier.

It is with astonishment that he sees the amused look briefly cross her face, as she tilts her head to one side. It was almost as if she found all of this entertaining. "You guys really should be more careful. You might have tried to pick the lock of my trailer with gloves on, but you left your fold-up table behind when you packed up the first night. Pulled off some nice prints..."

Tig hears Kozik say something behind his gag, and he turns his head to see the look of surprise across his colleague's face.

"Fingerprints?" Tig asks as he looks back to the woman. "Now how would a pretty thing like you be able to check my fingerprints?"

The woman stays silent as she just looks at him, the amused look still on her face. Tig sighs when he realises that this was the only explanation he was going to get out of her.

"So you know all about us?" he asks.

"Let's just say I know more that I want to" she responds.

She is interrupted as a moan comes from Juice. However, the young member of SAMCRO doesn't wake up; he is just stirring in his sleep. Tig looks over at Juice, and then back to the woman.

"Uppers" exclaims Tig. "Can't be certain, but he's been doing late hours last couple of days. Probably taken something to keep him awake..."

"Then he'll be out for a while longer, and all he'll have is a hell of a headache when he wakes." she responds. Tig had the feeling that she was actually concerned for her unconscious prisoner.

Kozik makes another noise behind his gag. Tig peers at him, and can see the frustrated look on his face. It suddenly dawns on him what Kozik was asking. The woman is watching them silently, with the almost-amused look still on her face.

"He'd like his gag off" explains Tig, as he looks back to the young woman.

"Oh, I'm sure he would..." she responds with a note of laughter in her voice "... but I don't like that kind of language. I think it best we keep him quiet."

Kozik makes a noise that sounds like "What!" He bangs his head back against the cab in frustration.

Tig finds himself once again grinning up at the woman. It seems to take her by surprise. A frown crosses her brow, and the look in her eyes showed she founds his behaviour puzzling. But before she can say anything there is a noise from the laptop. A 'ping' that confirmed she had just received e-mail.

She silently turns around and walks back to the table where she sits down in front of the laptop. Tig turns to Kozik and whispers "Keep it down, Kozik. You heard the lady, no swearing."

Kozik glares at him.

Tig shifts around to try and make himself comfortable. He wasn't sure why he was finding all of this entertaining himself, but he realised one thing. He really fancied the woman who had taken him hostage. He felt like they were on the same wavelength. Dangerous she might be (and yes, that was totally turning him on); but he got the distinct impression that she didn't mean them any real harm. At least, he hoped she didn't...

The Call

The woman has spent the last fifteen minutes going through the e-mails sent to her by her friend. She had a copy of her prisoner's police and prison records, as well as whatever information T.J. managed to scrounge for her in such a short time. She was currently going through what he had found out about the motorcycle club that called themselves SAMCRO; most of them had a police record. The information from ATF wasn't encouraging either; these men were not the fools she had originally taken them for. Pretty dangerous men, from what the ATF reported. Not that she was scared, just curious why these men had been surveilling her.

She finally reads up on the last of the information, and looks across at the three men in the pick-up truck. The guy called Trager was still watching her, but she had tried her best to ignore him. The other one called Kozik had finally gone quiet when he had realised she wasn't going to take his gag off, and Ortiz was still out for the count.

Well, time to get this over and done with...

Tig continues to watch her as she walks over to the three cell phones; that she had opened out ready in case one of them rang. She picks up the first one, but hears a voice from behind her.

"Mine's the one in the middle..." states Tig.

She puts the cell-phone in her hand down, and turns around to look at Tig who was grinning at her again over the side of the pick-up. She wasn't sure why this man was being so co-operative. Or kept offering her that inane smile of his.

"I'm thinking you need to contact the club." advises Tig in answer to her silent question. "Clay's the top number on the speed-dial. He's our President; you need to talk to him."

She turns around to reach for the middle phone and then turns back to face him. She silently goes through the cell's directory, but pauses when he talks again.

"I'd really like to know your first name, sweetheart" asks Tig. She just gives him a cold look. "Come on, what's the harm in a name?" he asks. Kozik is watching the exchange in silence, not sure what Tig was up to.

"I tell you one thing it's not" she responds, a sharp note to her voice. "It's not sweetheart, pretty thing, sweetie or darling..."

Tig's face is a picture. Until he hears Kozik chortle behind his gag, and he turns around and scowls at as his colleague. He sharply turns back around when he hears her talking into the cell phone.

"I'm afraid Mr Trager's a bit busy right now, Mr Morrow. I am talking to Clay Morrow?" She pauses as even Tig can hear Clay shouting down the cell, but the woman doesn't seem fazed and continues to speak calmly. "I think you already know who this is". There is more shouting. "...If you're going to shout, perhaps I can talk to your colleague. A..." she pauses as if recalling the name "Mr Jackson Teller? I believe he's your Vice-President?"

The Deal

Clay was in the office going through some paperwork, when Jax walks in. "I'm just off home to get changed and pick up Tara and the kids..." he advises. "Mum said not to forget we're eating at yours tonight..."

"I hadn't forgotten" grumbles Clay.

Jax is on the point of sighing, but stops himself. Clay had been irritable ever since the incident with ... that woman. It was like she had really gotten to his step-father, and nothing anybody said to him the last few days seemed to calm him down. Clay had been especially angry with Juice when he had come up with virtually no information. Juice had disappeared earlier that day, and Jax got the impression he was glad to be out of Clay's way.

"I still have a bad feeling about all of this. I really don't think this is a good idea..." states Jax, before he can stop himself.

"What!" responds Clay, as he looks up from his paperwork at Jax.

"If Happy was right, and she is under wit-pro, then we could have the feds crawling all over our arse. We should..." responds Jax.

"If you're gonna say just give it up" interrupts Clay "... then give it a rest, Jax. I know what I'm doing..."

"I think we should put it the vote" Jax responds. Clay picks up on the challenging tone to his step-son's voice.

Before he can respond, Clay's cell phone rings. He pulls it out of his pocket and checks the number before putting the cell to his ear. "Tig, this had better be good news! Has she left yet?"

The female voice that responds makes him pause. "I'm afraid Mr Trager's a bit busy right now, Mr Morrow. I am talking to Clay Morrow?"

"What the..." starts Clay "Who the hell is this?"

"I think you already know who this is..."

The voice is familiar for some odd reason. Then a dawning comprehension crosses Clay's face. "Fucking bitch!" he shouts. "What the hell do you want? Where's Tig?"

He sees the look of shock on Jax's face, who steps forward as if to listen to the conversation.

"If you're going to shout, perhaps I can talk to your colleague? A..." she pauses as if recalling the name "... Mr Jackson Teller? I believe he's your Vice-President?"

Clay is gob-smacked, but notices the inquisitive look on Jax's face. He finds himself handing his cell over to Jax. He wasn't sure he would be able to talk to the woman without losing it any more than he had already. "It's her..." advises Clay in answer to Jax's questioning look. "... she wants to talk to you."

He notices the comprehending look cross Jax's face, as he takes the cell from Clay. He switches the phone over to speaker so they can both hear, and puts his finger to his lips as if to ask Clay to keep quiet. "This is Jax, Mrs Hunter..." he confirms. He remembers that she had been quite polite and courteous when they had spoken before, despite running them off her property. It dawns on him that if he acted the same, it wouldn't do any harm.

"I think we have a bit of a problem and I have a proposal to make, Mr Teller. I don't think Mr Morrow is in any kind of mood to speak to me..." she explains. Clay gives Jax an irritable look.

"Can I ask where Tig is?" asks Jax.

"Mr Trager? I'm afraid he's a bit ... tied up right now. Along with a Mr Kozik and Mr Ortiz." she responds.

Jax and Clay exchange stunned glances. "I'm taking it they're your hostages?" asks Jax.

"Let's just say they aren't going anywhere soon. They're perfectly okay, I can assure you..." Her voice is cool and confident.

"Then let me talk to Tig first. Before we discuss your ... proposal" responds Jax.

There is silent for a few seconds. Then they are both startled when they hear Tig. "Hey, Jax. We're all okay, man. Kinda in a spot here..." advises Tig.

"And how the hell did she get one over you, Tig!" Clay jumps in, not being able to help himself.

Tig never gets a chance to respond, as the woman pulls away the cell phone from where she held it to his mouth. There is the sound of gravel crunching as she walks away from him.

"I'm hoping we can come to an agreement, Mr Teller. I don't think either of us wants any more trouble" she responds.

"Call me Jax" he responds. Clay notices the thoughtful look on his face, as if thinking something through as he pauses for a moment. "How much do you want, Mrs Hunter?" he asks.

There is a pause on the other end of the cell, as if the question had taken the woman by surprise. "I don't want your money, Mr Teller! Just that you listen to my proposal?"

Jax and Clay exchange another glance. Both of them thought this was getting weirder by the minute...

"Go ahead, we're listening" responds Jax.

The woman pauses first, as if weighing up her thoughts. "I'm not sure why you're doing all this, but I can take a guess. I think there's something on my property you want. I'm pretty sure it's not in the house, so I suspect it's somewhere nearby. So my proposal is that you come get your men, and you can look around the rest of the property. If you find whatever you're looking for, you can take it..."

"In exchange for what..." interrupts Jax, feeling that it couldn't be this easy.

He can hear the woman sigh for a moment. "I like my privacy. When you leave, you don't come back and you leave me alone. That's the deal."

Jax looks across to Clay, and notices the surprised look on his step-father's face. Clay nods as if in agreement. "What if we agree?" he asks, still wary that there was something else going on.

"Then you come unarmed with one other person to search the place. Bring torches, it'll get dark soon. You can take as long as you want to look around and then you leave. Your colleague can drive the other truck away with your ... men in." She responds.

"Forgive me for asking, Mrs Hunter. But seeing as how you've already got Tig and the others, that feels awfully like walking into a trap..." responds Jax.

"And there's nothing from stopping you reneging on your end of the deal either, Mr Teller. It seems we are going to have to trust each other. Do we have a deal or not?"

Jax is surprised enough to pause before responding. "And what if we refuse?"

"Then I'll have to let your men go, anyway. But my guess is that you'll still want to search my property the next time I leave it. I just want this over and done with." she responds. It sounded logical to Jax, but he still wasn't sure if she had some type of agenda he couldn't figure out.

"We could call in the cops..." advises Jax. Clay looks surprised, but realises that Jax was trying to discover how far he could push this woman. It might even give a clue if she was in wit-pro, or was hiding from someone.

"I'm not the one with a criminal record, Mr Teller. However, it wouldn't look good if your men were up for trespassing. I could probably get a possible intent to kidnap or burglary, if you want..."

Jax sighs. "Point taken, Mrs Hunter". He looks across to Clay, who gives him an unhappy nod. "You have yourself a deal. I'll be there in twenty minutes..."

"Only one other person accompanies you, Mr Teller. Oh – and don't think of getting one of your men up on the ridge. I've got sensors and cameras up there."

The phone clicks as she finishes the call.

"Shit!" exclaims Clay.

Insurance

The woman turns around after she finishes her phone call. She puts the cell with the others in the cardboard box on the table, and starts to head towards the trailer, where the door was open. However, she pauses as she hears a voice from behind her.

"You were watching us the whole time we were watching you?" asks Tig, finding it hard to hide the astonishment in his voice. There was also a little bit of admiration for the woman who seemed so self-assured and confident.

"No, just after the first day..." she responds, without turning around.

"How the hell did you know..." he asks, but she takes no notice of him as she enters the trailer.

She comes out a few minutes later with a medium black box in her hand, which she places on the table. Tig is surprised to see she has also put on a plain dark green flak-jacket. She quickly picks up the cardboard box from the other table, and moves to the front of the pick-up. She opens the front door and puts the box on the passenger seat, and then heads back towards the table. Tig suddenly realises that it probably contained their weapons, and anything else she had taken off them whilst they were unconscious.

"What gave us away?" he asks again, but she ignores him as picks up the black box and hurriedly walks towards the track that leads up to the house. It was like she was up to something, and Tig is curious. He twists around to watch what she was doing, and notices she seems to be putting down something alongside the side of the track, about ten feet apart and two either side of the road.

Tig notices she quickly looks at her watch as if counting the time. She then runs back with the black box still in her hand. She cautiously steps up to the side of the pick up where Juice was still happily out of it, and bends down. Tig knew she was fixing something to the underside of the pick-up. He and Kozik exchange a look, not sure what was going on.

"Okay, now I'm curious. What was that about?" he asks. He was expecting her to ignore him again, as she walks back towards the table area.

She turns around looks at him with a serious look on her face. "I like to be careful, Mr Trager" she informs him.

Tig offers her another smile. "Tig. Everybody calls me Tig."

She looks at him as if she couldn't work him out. Or that he was just plain crazy. "Do you always talk so much?" she asks as she turns around to pick up a small device that looks like a cell phone from the black box.

Tig can hear a snort of laughter from Kozik, but ignores it. "Nope, I just like making friends with crazy-but-hot women who kidnap me and tie me up..." he responds.

He knew his words had gotten to her, by the surprised look on her face. It takes her a moment to get over her astonishment. "You're the one that's crazy" she states.

Tig just grins in response.

She presses something in her hands, and both Tig and Kozik are startled as a there is a small explosion just down the road. Even Juice turns over in his sleep. They both turn their heads to see smoke and fire show for a brief instance, before the wind dissipates the resulting funnel of smoke.

"Shit! What the hell was that?" asks Tig, as he turns with shock showing on his face.

"Insurance" she states.

Confrontation

Jax silently drives with Opie in the passenger seat, in one of the club's vans. They were heading down the track that led to Red Ferne House. There was still an hour's worth of daylight left, and Jax was anxious as to how this was going to go. Opie reaches forward and takes out a gun from the glove compartment, and checks it before placing it under his jacket.

"Probably not a good idea, Op..." advises Jax.

"From what you said, she's dangerous" replies Opie. "Better to be safe than sorry."

Jax doesn't argue, as they finally pull into the driveway. He notices the club's pick-up parked just outside the caravan. He swaps a look with Opie as they both notice the three men tied up in the back, and Jax pulls up as close as he can to the pick-up. He looks around but for the moment can't see any trace of the woman. He notices that Tig is sitting up and is watching the vehicle as it comes to a stop.

Both of them start to get out of their vehicle, and Jax glances at Tig as if expecting him to say something. Tig remains silent, even though he is obviously the only one without a gag on. Jax starts to step towards Tig with puzzlement on his face, but stops as Tig shakes his head and nods his head towards the house.

"I'd appreciate it if you'd take off your jackets, gentlemen." Advises the female voice from one of the windows. The barrel of a gun can be seen through the open window, although the woman herself has stood to one side so she is out of sight.

Jax and Opie swap a look. Jax is the first to undo his jacket and lifts up the hem. He slowly turns around so the woman can clearly see he doesn't have a gun on him. He looks at Opie, and is surprised to see that Opie seems amused. "Told you it wasn't a good idea, Opie..." he exclaims.

Opie shouts towards the house "I'm gonna pull out my gun, okay lady?" There is silence, so Opie assumes that it was okay to proceed. He slowly pulls out the gun out from under his jacket with two fingers. He drops it into the front of their van through the window, then copies Jax and pulls up the bottom of his jacket and slowly turns around.

The woman appears at the doorway, and both men are surprised to see her wearing what looks like a flak-jacket. She has a semi-automatic in her hand, but has lowered it so it is no longer pointing at them.

"Sorry, Jax" advises Tig "She told us to stay quiet or she would shoot us first if you made any sudden moves, until she checked you were unarmed..." Kozik mumbles something as if in agreement.

Jax just gives Tig an exasperated look as he turns back to the woman. He pauses as Tig adds "... she stuck something under the pick-up. Could be some sort of explosive, so please go careful guys..."

Jax peers closely at the woman, and notices that in her left hand she holds something that looks like a mobile phone. "A bit of overkill, don't you think Mrs Hunter?" asks Jax.

"Insurance, Mr Teller" she states "Nobody will get hurt as long as you keep to your word."

"Paranoid" states Opie. Jax wasn't sure if he was speaking to him or the woman. However, he is startled to see a distraught look across the woman's face for a brief second. It goes quiet for a moment, as if no-one knew what to do next.

"So, can we take a look around?" asks Jax.

"Sure, go ahead" agrees the woman. She nods towards the path that lead away from the house and towards some outbuildings, which Jax had noticed previously. Opie heads back towards the van, and the woman watches him carefully but keeps the gun lowered. He opens the back and pulls out two heavy-duty torches, whilst Jax moves a step towards Tig.

"You wanna explain this, Tig?" Despite the situation, he just couldn't resist the urge to make Tig feel uncomfortable.

"Not my fault..." responds Tig. Jax is surprised the see the laid-back look on his face "...sometimes we just get caught up in stuff we can't do anything about. It has been a very strange day..."

Jax looks towards Kozik, who just rolls his eyes upwards in agreement. In the meantime, Opie walks up to stand behind Jax with the two torches in his hands. Jax turns towards the woman, who has been silently watching them but has remained standing where she is.

"C'mon Jax, let's get this over with..." advises Opie, as he starts to lead the way down the path. Jax heads out after him, but pauses when he hears the woman speak again.

"You might want to try the building with the red ornamental door. Looks like something was moved out from there a couple of years ago." she advises.

Jax and Opie exchange another glance, but turn around and keep walking. They disappear into the oncoming twilight as the path veers around the side of the house.

It goes silent for a while. Tig then turns to watch the woman, as she moves to sit herself down at one of the tables.

"You know, sweetheart..." begins Tig.

She looks up with a stiff look on her face. "You want the gag back on, Mr Trager?"

He goes quiet. He got the distinct impression she was starting to get annoyed with him; and smiles to himself that he had finally started to get under her skin.

The Search

It is an hour or so later when Jax and Opie return along the path. They both have their torches on as it is now getting dark. The woman has put on an outside light at the front of the trailer; that illuminates the whole area. She stands up from where she was waiting patiently at one of the tables. Tig and Kozik are starting to feel the chill of the evening, but Juice is still out cold. In fact, he had started to snore until Kozik had kicked him with his bound-up feet.

"Any luck?" asks Tig.

Jax just shakes his head, but Tig notices his eyes dart towards the woman. It dawns on Tig that it was best not to mention what they had been looking for. Opie heads straight for the van, whilst Jax starts to head towards the pick-up.

"The keys are in the ignition, and I've placed their stuff in the front" the woman advises to Jax, warily keeping the semi-automatic in her hand ready for any trouble. However, Jax had already discussed with Opie that it was best to just get-the-hell out of there after their unsuccessful search.

Opie has already got in the van, and quickly turns it around as he heads back down the track. Jax silently gets into the pick-up, still keeping a wary eye on the woman. He turns the engine over, puts on the lights and starts to follow Opie. Tig turns his head to take one last admiring view of the woman as she steps out onto the driveway and watches them leave.

However, Tig finds himself being bounced around as the pick-up starts to speed up. "Hey Jax" he shouts. "Stop the truck! Get us untied..."

Although Jax has the window down and can hear every word Tig says, he ignores him.

"Pull up, man!" exclaims Tig "we're being bounced around like a couple of tennis balls, here!"

Jax puts his head out of the window, so Tig can hear him clearly. "You guys think you deserve to be cut loose after getting yourself caught? Serves you right when we turn up at the club with you and Kozik looking like a couple of bruised hogs tied up ready for a barbeque..."

Kozik and Tig exchange a glance. Tig can hear Kozik sigh as they both realise that Jax had every intention of leaving them tied up until they got to the garage and club. This was going to be so embarrassing...

"Jax, c'mon, be fair!" exclaims Tig.

Jax turns on the radio in the van and turns up the volume, so he can't hear Tig's further comments. He should actually be really angry, but finds himself smiling. All that effort for nothing. The woman – whose full name he still didn't know – had really pulled a fast-one on all of them.

Last Word

Tig moans to himself as the pick-up truck follows Opie's van into the front area of the garage. Most of the brothers have turned out to wait for them, after hearing from Clay what had happened. As the pick-up comes to a stop, he sees Happy grinning evilly, as he approached the back of the truck. The rest of the men start to crowd around the back of the pick-up.

Happy starts clapping. Others follow, and before long there are whistles and taunts coming from the rest of the club members. Kozik just leans his head back against the cab of the pick-up and looks completely fed-up. Juice is still totally out cold, whilst Tig glares around at his brothers. However, he ducks his head when he sees Clay making his way through the crowd of men.

In the meantime, Jax and Opie have got out of the vehicles to join the crowd. Clay gives Tig a hard look before turning to Jax. "Any luck?" he asks.

"Sorry, Clay. The guns weren't there..." advises Jax.

"We found a crate lid in one of the buildings" adds Opie. "Could have been from a crate of guns, but we couldn't be sure of the markings – wood was rotten. Mrs Hunter was right, looks like whatever was in there was moved out a couple of years ago..."

Clay looks disappointed, but turns towards the rest of the crew as they quieten down. "I propose that we vote on the drinks tonight being on the three dumb-asses that got hooked like fish. All in favour?" he asks. Everyone puts up their hands, including Opie and Jax. Kozik and Tig exchange exasperated glances. "Majority vote, let's get those drinks" adds Clay.

As the men start heading towards the club-house, it is Happy who is the only one to stay behind and starts to pull out a knife. He gets into the pick-up to start untying Kozik, Tig and Juice. He cuts Tig's bonds first, who gratefully stretches his legs and gingerly climbs out of the truck. He finds pins and needles assail him as he gets onto his feet, and that he is unsteady. He holds onto the side of the pick-up until he starts to feel his feet again.

Happy then cuts through Kozik's bonds, who takes his own gag off. "What happened to Juice?" Happy asks, as he starts to cut away the young Puerto-Rican's ties.

"He'll be okay, let him sleep it off" advises Kozik. His voice is hoarse from being gagged for so long.

Happy jumps off the end of the vehicle, and Kozik shortly follows. Tig starts to unsteadily walk towards the garage, his legs tight together as if he wanted desperately to take a leak.

"What the fuck were you doing chatting the bloody woman up, Tig?" calls Kozik. It was the first time he had been able to speak in a while, and he was still feeling pretty pissed about the whole situation.

"Gotta take a pee..." replies Tig, ignoring Kozik's question. He speeds up as he heads towards the nearest toilets.

Kozik and Happy exchange a look. "I really need a drink..." advises Kozik as he heads towards the club-house.

"You wanna tell me what happened?" asks Happy.

"You're feeling of being watched turned out to be right. Bloody woman was watching us the whole time" responds Kozik. He misses the smile on Happy's face, who watches Kozik enter the club-house. Happy is just about to follow, when his cell phone rings. He stays outside as he answers it.

Meantime, in the club-house, Clay, Jax and Opie are standing together at the bar whilst drinking a beer. Chuckie walks up to them with an anxious look on his face.

"I'm really sorry, Clay" apologises Chuckie. "Ollie said he was the only one who knew the location. I really can't understand it..."

"It's fine, Chuckie" advises Jax. "I guess your friend might have told someone else whilst he was in prison. Looks like the guns were moved a couple of years ago. Not your fault..."

Chuckie sighs and turns away, looking very unhappy. He had really wanted to help the club out, like the last time.

Kozik walks in. He stops for a moment to look around the club members, and then decides it was best to get the embarrassment over with as soon as possible. He warily walks up to the bar where Jax, Clay and Opie are standing and helps himself to a beer.

"Real sorry, Clay. We just weren't expecting to be clobbered like that..." apologises Kozik.

"How did you get caught?" asks Opie, curiosity in his voice.

"She must have got Juice first, he went for a walk. Tig went for a... toilet break ... and I was on watch. She must have come up from behind me, and I felt something on the back of my neck. Next thing I know is I was tied up in the back-up of our pick-up..." He shrugs, as if he couldn't offer any further explanation. One of the prospects passes him a bottle of beer.

Tig appears from the club house's entrance to the garage. He saunters over to the bar, and silently helps himself to a whisky. He takes a long drink, and then just stays leaning up against the bar. He closes his eyes for a moment as if there was something bothering him.

"You wanna explain exactly what happened, Tig?" asks Clays.

Tig looks to him, and Clay is surprised the see a sad smile on his Sergeant-at-Arms face. "Not particularly, Clay" he states and goes back to his mulling over his drink.

Jax and Clay exchange a surprised look. But it suddenly dawns on Clay that Tig was totally humiliated about the whole situation, and embarrassing him any more wouldn't help.

At that point Happy strolls in, just as he is putting away his cell phone. "Clay, I've got some good news..."

Opie makes room at the bar so Happy can stand next to Clay and Jax. Clay raises his eyebrow in question.

"I've just heard from an old acquaintance. He's got some stock down in Mexico that he's willing to sell..." Happy advises. "We're going to have to pick the stuff up ourselves and get it across the border. But he's willing to offer us a reasonable deal..."

"'Bout time we got a change in luck" advises Jax. "Do you think he'd have enough for us to settle with the Niners?"

"I've set up a meet for tomorrow" confirms Happy. "I don't think we're going to make a great profit, but he's got enough to last us for the Niner-deal and maybe re-supply some of our personnel stock"

"At least someone round here's doing their job properly..." advises Clay.

Kozik realises it is not the time to say anything, but looks embarrassed. Tig is still leaning up against the bar and ignores Clay's barbed comment.

"Don't be too hard on them, Clay..." responds Happy. Clay, Jax, Opie and Kozik all looked surprised. "I had a feeling about her right from the start..."

Nobody notices that Tig has turned his head as Happy is talking, and a grin begins to cross his face.

"Not anything I can put my finger on, but she definitely wasn't just the hot-chick we originally made her out for." Happy continues, in response to Jax's questioning glance.

At the moment an irate voice comes from the entrance to the club. "How the hell did I get back here?" asks Juice. He was standing at the door with a completely bewildered look on his face. He suddenly puts his hand to his head. "Oh god, my head!" he exclaims. He unsteadily heads towards the nearest table and plonks himself down on one of the chairs. He lays his head on the table and puts his arms over his head, as if he found the lights in the club-house to bright.

"Juice is going to be so pissed when he realises he missed all the excitement" states Jax. Opie and Kozik laugh at this, and it seems to break the tense atmosphere.

Kozik notices that Chuckie is still hovering around and turns towards him. "Get the prospect's to help him upstairs, would you? He's gonna feel pretty sick for a while." Chuckie seems happy for something to do, and heads off to find one of the prospects.

Clay and Jax both give Kozik an inquiring look. "She said he'd have a bad head once he woke up, from the stuff she gave us..." he offers in explanation.

It goes quiet between the men for a while.

"Clay said she'd put up sensors and camera's on the ridge?" Happy asks Kozik.

"Yeah, so we heard" responds Kozik. "Apparently she got all our fingerprints too..."

"It would explain how she knew all our names..." adds Jax, his amusement turning to concern. "God knows what else she found out about us..."

"I have the distinct impression she knew exactly what she was doing" adds Kozik. He turns towards Tig, as if expecting him to add something else. Tig stays unusually quiet, the slim smile still on his face. Opie has a thoughtful look on his face, and puts down his beer. He starts to head out towards the entrance to the club.

"Op?" asks Jax.

"Be back in a minute. Just checking something..." replies Opie, without turning around. He disappears out to the garage courtyard.

In the meantime, a couple of the prospects help Juice on his feet and head upstairs.

"I guess we can just put this down to experience..." Clay suddenly advises.

Jax turns with astonishment on his face to his step-father. "I thought you were still pissed at her..." he asks.

Clay sighs. "The guns weren't there, and nobody was hurt. I'm not wasting any more time on the bitch..."

Jax leans back onto the bar. "I'm still interested as to who she is..." he exclaims. He pauses as Opie walks back in the bar. He is carrying something in his hand.

As he approaches them, they can all see what looks like a large spiked object about the size of his hand. It has a central point that looks like a golf ball, and six spikes sticking out that are about four centimetres long. Opie gingerly puts the object onto the bar.

"Op?" asks Clay.

"I pulled it from underneath the pick-up" explains Opie. Kozik takes a step back as he realises it was the object the young woman had put underneath the truck.

"Careful, Opie. I think it's some sort of explosive" adds Kozik.

"It's not live" responds Opie. "I think it's remote-controlled."

"You think?" asks Jax, warily looking at the object.

"I've heard about these..." muses Opie. "They're pretty new. Real hard to get hold of; restricted to the military. In fact, they're so new they don't even have a nickname for them yet..."

It goes quiet amongst Clay and the others at the implications of this revelation. Tig's grin gets wider as he turns back to his drink, but nobody has noticed yet.

"Professional" states Happy. It dawns on Clay, Jax and Opie that he wasn't talking about the explosive device in front of them but the woman who had placed it on the pick-up.

"Professional what?" asks Clay.

Happy offers an apologetic grin. "Military, maybe? Haven't quite worked that one out, yet..." he explains.

"Real mistrustful" adds Opie.

"Pretty, though..." adds Jax. Clay looks at him in surprise. "You've gotta admit it, Clay. She got to you too, that's why you got so pissed..."

Clay looks slightly embarrassed, and leans back towards the bar as if to ignore the others who were also grinning.

"I liked her eyes..." adds Kozik.

"Never got a chance to meet her up close" bemoans Happy.

"Real attractive green eyes" continues Kozik. "and a cute ass..."

"Nice rack" adds Opie. Jax was taken aback; usually Opie didn't take much notice of other women, especially since he had got married again.

"Okay, okay. Enough" admonishers Clay "She was cute but crazy. Let's leave it at that..."

Clay pauses as he happens to look over at Tig, and notices the huge grin across his right-hand man's face. "And what are you grinning at, Tig?" he asks.

Tig turns around and looks all of them over with his blue-eyed stare. "She really got to all of you..."

"And she didn't get to you?" responds Kozik sharply. He was the only one to have witnessed the way Tig had reacted to the woman, when they were tied up in the pick-up truck.

Tig turns his head back to stare at his drink, the grin no longer on his face. It goes silent between everyone. Clay has a look of pity on his face, as it suddenly dawns on him that maybe Tig had been punished enough for something that really had been outside of his control. He can see that something had really disturbed the man he had known for over thirty years.

"I guess none of it could be helped, Tig. We all got suckered, you shouldn't blame yourself..." Clay says softly.

"Isn't that..." responds Tig, sorrow in his voice.

Jax and Opie exchange a bewildered look. Clay realised that something was definitely bothering his friend. Happy looks on with a bemused expression. Kozik suddenly has a feeling what is wrong with the man who had once been his best friend, but decides to stay silent.

"Tig?" asks Clay, unusual concern in his voice. "What the fuck's wrong with you?"

Tig takes a long drink before he answers.

"I think I'm in love, man..."

Crazy

It is just past midday the next day, when the young woman who had been the talk of the club was washing up cups in the trailer. She suddenly pauses as she hears a faint sound, and hurriedly dries her hands. It sounded like a car engine or bike coming down the track, so she quickly grabs a handgun she had left on the trailer's small table, and heads towards the open door. She puts the gun into the back of her jeans as she steps down to stand just outside the trailer.

As she patiently waits for the vehicle to show itself, her face shows surprise as her second visitor today pulls up on the driveway. It was a motorcycle, and she knew enough about SAMCRO to know that it looked like the type of bike they normally rode. She puts her right hand on the grip of her gun, as her visitor kills the bike's engine and pulls off his helmet.

Tig notices that the woman has her right hand behind her, and realises that she probably had a gun tucked in the back of her jeans. He comprehends that he needed to be careful and not make any sudden moves. He decides to stay seated on his bike in case he needed to make a fast exit, and hopefully, she would not feel threatened if he stayed where he was.

He notices the hard look in her eyes as she stares at him, an almost-puzzled look on her face.

"Afternoon, sweetheart" he greets her cheerfully, a smile on his face as if to ease the tension. But she offers a frown in response.

"The agreement was that your club left me alone" she states, her frown turning to displeasure.

"Well..." starts Tig, and then stops. He'd been rehearsing what he was going to say to her on his ride over, but suddenly finds himself speechless.

He found himself gazing at her again. She was just as beautiful and hot as he remembered. Her green eyes were still as hard as steel, but he found that a challenge rather than intimidating. She returns his stare with one of her own, and some very odd reason Tig suddenly had the feeling that she was not particularly angry with him. Just that she couldn't understand his attitude towards her or why he was here.

Tig finally finds himself speaking. "You get the flowers?" he asks.

"I don't want anything from SAMCRO" she responds coldly.

"Actually, they were just from me..." he advises "Did you not get the note?"

"The delivery guy wouldn't take them back" she explains "So I got rid of them..." Her gaze briefly falls behind Tig, who looks around. At the end of the driveway is a bonfire that was just starting to burn itself out. There were a few flower stalks lying on the ground beside the bonfire. Tig looks back, and seems disappointed that she had destroyed his gift.

"Don't you like flowers?" he asks "Any woman likes flowers..."

She just stares at him and raises her eyebrow in response. It goes silent between them for a few seconds, until she adds "Why would you buy me anything?" she asks.

Tig offers her another grin. "Well, it wasn't very nice of us, you know. To set up surveillance on you like that..."

"Then you shouldn't have done it..." she responds.

"Yeah, I got that" he admits. "The flowers were in way of an apology. And seeing you're new to Charming, as a welcome-to-town gift as well..." Tig suddenly realises how idiotic he sounds, and pauses.

"I don't want anything from you. Or you club" she re-iterates.

Tig is not sure what to say. He suddenly realises that his normal chat-up lines weren't working with this woman, and found he was floundering. Maybe he should take a leaf out of her book, and be direct with her. "Look, Da..." he stops when he remembered that she didn't liked to be called 'darling' or anything similar "... ma'am. I'm real sorry that way we spied on you like that. That's my personal apology, not the clubs. I'm afraid Clay's still pretty pissed about the whole thing..."

He pauses as she interrupts "You expect me to apologise in return, for ... catching you and your colleagues?" she asks.

Tig laughs. "Nope, I guess we deserved what we got..."

She raises her eyebrow in response. "I don't think you're here to just apologise?" she asks.

Tig smiles and it goes silent between them again. "Okay, I'm going to be honest. I'd really like to know you're first name, Mrs Hunter..."

She looks taken aback for a moment. "Why would you want to know my name?" she asks.

"Personal reasons" he responds. She gives him the same look she had the previous day. As if she couldn't work him out.

"I don't care for your personal reasons, Mr Trager. I think you had better leave..." she responds, a hard tone now showing in her voice. She takes a step forward, and her hand takes a firmer grip on the gun tucked in her belt.

Tig knew it was time to depart, and silently puts on his helmet. He turns over the engine on his bike, but has one last thing to say. "Well, I'll have to know your first name at some point, Mrs Hunter" he raises his voice over the sound of the engine.

She raises her eyebrow again, as if she didn't understand what he meant. Tig's grin gets bigger. "When we get hitched, I'll need to know your name for the marriage vows..."

Astonishment crosses her face for a moment. However, she recovers quickly and her face becomes cold again. "You really are crazy, aren't you, Mr Trager?" she responds.

"Totally crazy about you..." Tig replies, having to have the very last word. He then puts his bike into gear. He quickly turns it around on the driveway, and heads back down the track. If it wasn't for the loud noise of the engine, she would have heard him whistling 'The Wedding March' as he heads out.

The woman watches him as he disappears into the distance. For a moment there is a puzzled but thoughtful look on her face. "Totally insane" she finds herself saying. Then she suddenly has a smile on her own face, and she laughs to herself. She couldn't help it, the guy calling himself 'Tig' was totally out-of-his-tree. It had been a very long time since she had found anything in life to laugh or smile about. She shakes her head as she heads back to the trailer.

Alexander "Tig" Trager would have loved her smile if he had seen it.


	2. Chapter 2  Deadlier Than The Male

_SAMCRO are once again in trouble; and this time the families of the club members are caught up in a desperate situation. Tig once again meets the woman who he has fallen in love with; but will she be willing to help the MC out of their predicament?_

"Seeing Mother"

It was Friday afternoon three weeks later when Tig drives up to the parking bay at Clay's house on his bike. He pulls up and switches off the engine, and then takes his helmet off. He finds himself putting his hand through his hair, as if trying to tidy it up.

He heads towards the rear door with a baffled look on his face. Clay had told him Gemma wanted 'to have a word with him', but he wasn't sure what it was about. As he enters the open back-door, he doesn't notice the blue sedan sitting half a block along the street. Two men sit in the front, one of them looking through a camera as he takes pictures of Tig. They are both in casual, non-descript clothes and have military-type haircuts. One has short brown hair, the other has black.

As they watch Tig disappear into the house, one of them pulls out a blue folder with papers in, from beside his front seat. He goes through them, until he finally comes across a prison record and he shows it to his colleague. The second man puts down the camera as he takes a look.

"Trager" observes the brown-haired man.

"Yeah, he's meant to be at the garage this time of day" states the one with black hair.

"The instructions were that if we saw any of them away from the garage; to pick them up first chance we got" advises the first man.

"We can put him with the women and children" suggests the second man. "Might keep them quiet if they have one of the men around..."

"Money's the same, either way" states the first man "I'll call in the van using the pre-pay. Might as well take them both now." He pulls out a cell phone, whilst the second man goes back to looking through the camera to scope out the house.

Totally unaware of the men that were watching and discussing him, Tig walks into the kitchen but doesn't see anyone around at first. "Gemma, you here?" he shouts out, closing the back door behind him.

"That you, Tig?" the voice comes from the dining room. He heads towards it, but comes to a halt as he first sees her. Gemma had taken the chance to do some dusting, and it is what is in her hands that makes Tig stop. Gemma had opened out the display cabinet and in her hands she was polishing a figurine of a little girl. On the dining room table Thomas is fast asleep in a carry-cot.

Gemma looks at him with a puzzled look on her face, as he stares at the figurine. "Oh, yeah. Sorry" she apologises as she carefully puts the figurine back in the display cabinet. She turns back to Tig, who is still warily gaping at the figurine, and she sighs. "Okay, in the kitchen..." she advises and picks up her second grandson's cot and steps back into the other room. Tig shudders for a moment, before pulling his gaze away from the display cabinet and following Gemma.

Gemma has put the carry-cot on the nearby counter, and heads towards the kettle. Thomas is still fast asleep. "Coffee?" she asks.

"No thanks, Gem" responds Tig. She still puts the kettle on, and takes out a cup to make herself a coffee. It goes comfortably quiet between them for a few seconds as Tig leans up against the kitchen table.

Tig peers at the boy in the carry-cot and then looks back to Gemma. "Thought Nina was looking after the kids?" he asks.

"Friday's her day off" explains Gemma. "Tara asked me to baby-sit this afternoon; so she could take Abel to his quarterly check-up at the Hospital".

Tig looks unsettled at the mention of a domestic life he had never really been part of, and decides to change the subject. "Clay said you wanted to see me?" asks Tig.

"Well, actually it was Clay's idea for us to have a little chat" responds Gemma as she turns around to look at him.

Tig raises his eyebrow in puzzlement.

"He's worried about you, Tig..." states Gemma.

"Bout what?" asks Tig.

Gemma sighs. "Clay's noticed you've been behaving kinda odd the last couple of weeks..."

An annoyed look crosses Tig's face. "I'm fine. Nothin' wrong with me..." he exclaims.

"Are you sure? Cause even I've had the feeling that you've not been quite yourself lately..." states Gemma.

Tig grins at her. "I hate it when mummy and daddy worry when they shouldn't..."

Gemma seems taken aback, and then realises that Tig is pulling her leg. She laughs as the kettle behind her starts to boil, and she turns around to turn it off and pour herself the coffee.

"Honest, Gem. I'm fine. So what exactly does Clay mean by 'behaving oddly'?" he asks.

"He thinks you've been a little distant..." she explains, as she turns back around with the full coffee cup in her hands.

"If he thinks I'm not been doing my job properly, he should have spoken to me himself..." exclaims Tig. There is a touch of anger in his tone.

"It's not that, Tig. He doesn't have any complaints about your work ... or your loyalty. It's just the feeling he has that you seem miles away sometimes..." she tries to explain to him.

"Clay's got you talking to me about a 'feeling' he has? Then you can tell him from me that I'm perfectly all right" advises Tig.

Gemma finally admits defeat. "Okay, I get it. You're fine. But if there is anything you want to talk about, I'm here if you..."

Tig smiles again at her as he interrupts. "Jesus, Gemma. Stop acting like you're really my mother, will you? I am over twenty-one..."

Gemma just gives him a look that showed she wasn't happy. "Your mother? At your age, I'm not sure if that's an insult or a compliment..."

Tig steps forward and Gemma is surprised as he suddenly kisses her on the cheek. "Prettiest and youngest mum and grandma on the block, honey..." he advises. He then steps back and leans back against the kitchen counter.

"You always could chat up the women, Tig..." Gemma smiles at the compliment.

She is surprised to see a frown cross his face for a moment. "Not all women, Gem..." Before she can ask what he meant by that, she sees his face change to his normal nonchalant look. "Okay, we done here? I've still got work back at the garage..." He stands up straight as if ready to turn around to leave, but pauses when he hears Gemma.

"Knew it had to be a woman" she states.

"Sorry?" asks Tig, as if he didn't know what she was talking about. But Gemma catches the uneasy look that crosses his face.

"This something to do with that ... woman ... the club dealt with a few weeks ago? Mrs Hunter?" she asks.

She is surprised to see the irate look cross his face. "I'm telling you what I told Clay. None of his damn business..."

It goes quiet between them, until Gemma suddenly remembers something. "You know Juice ran into her last week at the grocers?" she advises.

Despite his best effort, Tig can't hide the grin that crosses his face. "Yeah, he told me. Apparently he offered to help her carry her bags to her pick-up. She told him that if she didn't leave him alone she'd call the police. Juice was pretty upset, poor kid. I think he's got a crush on her..."

"Kozik said something about you trying to chat her up the day you were caught? And Clay mentioned something afterwards that you said you were in ..." She pauses as she notices the irate look on Tig's face begin to turn to aggravation.

"I'll kill Kozik for telling everyone about that! I was just drunk and still full of that shit she gave us. I was so out of it, I didn't know what the hell I was saying that night..." before he can explain further, they both hear the front doorbell chime.

"I'll get that first. Don't go anywhere, we still need to talk..." advises Gemma, as she puts down her coffee cup. She realised it might not be a bad idea to give Tig time to calm down a bit, and heads towards the dining room on her way to the front hallway.

Tig leans back against the kitchen counter, and he glances at the closed kitchen door. He ponders whether it would be an idea to split now whilst she was busy; but then realises she would only catch up with him later. He hears a sound like a burp from the carry-cot and saunters over to take a look. Jax's son is awake, and peers up at Tig.

"Whatcha looking at, kid" Tig says as the little boy smiles up at him.

He is still leaning over the carry-cot, when Gemma comes back into the kitchen. He looks up and goes completely still as he notices the alarmed look on her face. There is a tall brown-haired man standing behind her, holding a gun to her head as he forces her to walk slowly into the room. His left arm is held around her neck. Behind him a black-haired man is following as back-up with another gun in his hand, which he aims at Tig as if to tell him to stay still.

"You can have all the valuables in the house, just leave!" advises Gemma.

Tig begins to take a step away from the carry-cot, but the second man moves away from the other man to get a clear shot at Tig. "Stay still, Trager" he states.

Tig knew that surprise is showing on his face. "What do you want?" he asks the obvious question. He stands up straight from his usual slouched stance, ready to make a move.

"Either of you make any sudden moves, I shoot the kid first" states the black-haired man. He points his gun away from Tig to the carry-cot.

"Bastard!" mumbles Gemma. She looks at Tig, and he shakes his head slightly. Tig knew that Gemma was capable of elbowing and then attacking the guy behind her, which would give him a chance to try and take the other guy. But with Jax's son's life in the balance, he knew it would be too dangerous to take the chance.

There is the sudden sound of the screech of tyres coming from the driveway outside of the kitchen. Both of the strange men stay still as if waiting for something. There is the sound of a van door slamming, and then the back door opens and a further man enters the kitchen. He's a middle-aged Mexican, and also has a gun in his hand as he cautiously steps in. In his left hand he has a roll of duct-tape.

"Turn around real slow, Trager" advises the brown-haired man. "Lean up against the kitchen and put your hands behind your back. I'd better not see your hands anywhere near that knife..."

Tig and Gemma exchange a glance. Gemma knew that Tig would fight if she asked him to. She shakes her head faintly. She knew that for the moment, the both of them had to do what they were told.

Tig slowly turns around and puts his hands behind his back. He feels someone move up behind him, and the black-haired man pulls out the knife from its sheaf. He also quickly body-searches him, and pulls out Tig's cell, and both items are thrown onto the floor. The black-haired stamps his foot on the cell, and then starts to bind up Tig's hands with the tape that the Mexican had handed over to him.

"Pick up your grandson, Mrs Morrow" advises the brown-haired man as he gingerly pulls back his arm so she is free for the moment.

Gemma turns around slowly, anger on her face. "You don't want him. Just take the both of us..." she pleads.

"You carry him, or we tape you up as well. Either way, the kid's coming with us..." explains the brown-haired man. He turns to the Mexican. "Pedro, check the house before we leave, to make sure the other kid's not here..."

Gemma and Tig exchange another look, both of them trying to hide their worry. These hard-assed guys knew more about them than they should. The Mexican disappears into the dining room, whilst Gemma steps forward to pick up the carry-cot. She looks down to her second grandson, who has for the moment gone back to sleep.

"You realise what kinda trouble you guys are in?" says Tig.

"You obviously know who we are..." adds Gemma. "Then you must know that Clay and Jax will kill you for this..."

"Yeah, like we're scared of a couple of has-been bikers" states the black-haired man. He indicates the back door. "You first into the van, Mrs Morrow." Gemma heads out of the kitchen with the man right behind her, the frustrated and angry look still on her face.

Tig turns around and intensely stares at the other man who is standing behind him. He can sense this man is tough, when the brown-haired man returns his stare without flinching. "I am going to fucking kill all of you involved in this" states Tig, a hard note to his voice.

The brown-haired man offers a grimace. "You'll never get a chance, old man. Now move!" he points the gun at Tig, as if he should head out towards the van. Tig scowls at him before following Gemma out of the house.

Tig knew two things. Whoever these men were, they weren't law enforcement. They were professional and cool, and had made their plans well...

Snatched

Tara Knowles is leaving the main Hospital building as she walks up to where she had parked her car. She is carrying Abel in one arm whilst her other held her bag. Abel, now two years old, was sucking on a lollipop. The check-up had gone well, and the Paediatrician had given Abel a sweet to keep him quiet.

As she approaches her car, which she had had to park towards the rear of the car park earlier as it was busy, she realises she has to get the keys out of her bag. She struggles for a moment with Abel in her arms, until a voice startles her from behind.

"Can I give you a hand, young lady?" asks the male voice. The accent was strange, not the usual Californian drawl most people had. Definitely foreign; maybe east-European.

Tara turns around to find herself looking at a tall, well-built man. He had a shaven head and wore a camouflage coat and blue jeans. For some odd reason, Tara feels uneasy as he is standing real close to her. She finds herself taking a step back.

He smiles at her, but the smile doesn't reach his eyes. "I hope I did not startle you, ma'am" He looks at the boy in Tara's arms. "Your mother seems to need some help..." he seems to explain to Abel. Abel looks at the man warily, and continues to suck on his lollipop.

Tara finds she does not like the way the foreign man is staring at Abel. It is with sudden fear that she realises that there was no-one else around this end of the car park.

"I'm fine, thank you" she exclaims. She turns towards the car, frantically using her spare hard to search through her bag for her car keys.

"You have a nice kid there, ma'am" adds the man as he takes a step closer. Tara finally manages to put her hands on her keys. Unfortunately, as she pulls them out she drops them to the ground.

"It would be such a shame if he got hurt..." he adds. Tara goes still in absolute fear, as she leans against the car.

"What do you want?" she finds herself whispering.

"The young man will be fine if you do exactly as I say..." he states.

Tara finds courage from somewhere and turns around. Her stomach goes cold as she sees the man holding a large knife in his right hand which he holds to his side.

"We do not want to scare him, do we, Doctor Knowles?" as the man looks at Abel again. Abel starts to cry as if he senses something is very wrong here. "Give me the handbag, please."

Tara just nods her head as if agreeing, as she hands over her bag. The man drops it and kicks it under the car.

"Now, we are going for a nice walk just around the corner. There is a van waiting for us..."

Family

It was forty minutes later as the van pulls up on a deserted road. The brown-haired and black-haired men are in the front, whilst Pedro is behind the van driving the sedan.

In the back of the van are Tig, Gemma, Tara and the two young children. Earlier on the men had entered the van to secure Tig and the women. They had searched them all again for cell phones, and then tied Tig so his feet were also taped up. He now sat back against the cab of the van in the middle of the floor. The van had seats on either side, and Tara had one hand handcuffed to the panel of the van. She was using her other hand to hold onto Abel, who had curled up against her and was now quiet but still frightened.

On the opposite side of the van, Gemma was also handcuffed with one hand to the van. Next to her was the carry-cot, which she kept a firm hand on as the van had been driving. Jax's second son was oblivious to what was going on around him, and was still asleep for the moment.

They hadn't said much to each other in the last half hour, since Tara had joined them with Abel. Except to confirm how each of them had been taken, and to re-assure Abel until he had quietened down. So far the men that had snatched them who sat in front had said very little, and after they had pulled up seemed to be waiting for something or someone. Tig had tried earlier to kick his legs against the doors, but they were firmly locked.

Gemma quietly tries to reach down to Tig's hands to try and untie them, but finds she can't reach with her other hand handcuffed. She has known Tig longer than Tara, and knows from the look on his face that he is frustrated and pissed at the situation they are in.

Tig suddenly speaks up to the two men who are patiently waiting in the front. "Hey, guys. Like to ask you something..."

"Shut it, Trager..." responds the black-haired man.

"You two been partners long?" asks Tig.

"What?" asks the brown-haired man as he turns around to look at Tig through the cubby-hole between the middle of the van and the cab.

Tig smiles up at him. "You just look so cute together. Couple of gay guys out on the town..."

Tara looks shocked. Gemma shakes her head as she understands that Tig is trying to push their captor's buttons. However, the man has moved away from the cubby-hole so Tig can't see his response. They can hear one of the front van doors open, and then slam shut.

"Now you've done it, Tig..." advises Gemma. She pauses as Tig suddenly starts using his knees and tied up legs to shuffle himself to the back end of the van, his legs ready to kick out when the back doors open.

However, the back doors do not open straight away. They can hear murmured voices, and then the doors finally open. Tig pauses when he sees the three people standing by the back of the van. The brown-haired man had wisely opened the door but had taken a step to one side, as if expecting such a move from Tig.

Lyla is standing right behind the van, and looks surprised to see Tig ready to kick out at her. She has her arms around both of Opie's children, Kenny and Ellie. She has obviously been crying and behind her stands the man who had snatched Tara and Abel. This time he has a gun in his hand, aimed at the children. Behind the van the Mexican called Pedro watches carefully what is going on, from the sedan.

Tig drops his legs as he realises his plan wouldn't work. However, before anybody can say anything Lyla and the two children are pulled to one side by the Eastern-European man. The brown-haired man reaches forward and grabs Tig by the jacket and wrenches him out of the van. Tig's hands and feet might be tied up, but he tries to take a bite out of the man. However, the man quickly drops Tig to the ground before he gets the chance.

"Inside, Mrs Winston" instructs the Eastern-European to Lyla and the children. Lyla still seems dazed, until the man points his gun at her. She has a frightened look on her face as she helps both children up into the van and follows quickly. They sit on either side of the van, Kenny next to the carry-cot and Lyla and Ellie the other side. Lyla looks more frightened than the children. She has her arm going around Ellie in comfort. Kenny just seems shocked and dazed.

All three men then turn to look down at Tig, who is still lying on the ground. Tig smiles inanely up at them. "I stand corrected" he says with a hoarse tone to his voice "I bet you guys really enjoy a threesome..."

"Shit, Tig!" exclaims Gemma under her breath.

Tig curls up into a ball as the three men all take a couple of kicks at him. The brown-haired man then pulls Tig to his feet, and smacks him across the face twice. The Eastern-European viciously punches him in the stomach so that he collapses. The brown-haired man, however, keeps him on his feet as he slams Tig's head against the door of the van.

"Don't kill him yet" advises the black-haired man.

The brown-haired man looks annoyed for a moment, then lifts up Tig and pushes him face-down on the floor in the van. The rear doors are then slammed and locked. They then hear the sound of muted voices as the men talk between them for a few minutes.

Tara has a concerned look on her face when she realises Tig is not moving. She tries to reach forward to check his pulse, but finds she can't reach. She turns to Lyla, who has started to cry again. "Can you turn him over, Lyla?"

Lyla seems to be dazed and looks back and forth from Tig to Tara.

"I can do it, Tara" exclaims Ellie. She gets up to stand over Tig, but finds she doesn't have enough strength to turn him over.

"Help her out, Lyla" asks Gemma, a hard tone in her voice. She notices Lyla still seems hesitant. "Lyla!" she almost shouts.

Lyla looks at Gemma and realises that despite the situation, it was not a good idea to get on the wrong side of Clay's husband. She is the only adult who is not tied up, and helps Ellie turn Tig over. She is surprised to see Tig open his eyes at the movement and moans in pain. His left eye is already starting to show a bruise and there is blood on his forehead.

He winks at Ellie with his good eye. "Thanks, kid."

"You okay, Uncle Tig?" asks Kenny, finally starting to come out of his daze.

Tig smiles. "Sure, Kenny. Just playing around. Help me sit up, sweetie" he asks Lyla, who reaches forward and manages to prop him back up against the cab.

As she sits back down, the back of the van opens up again. The Mexican is now standing to the rear of the van, a camera in his hand. The Eastern-European hovers beside him, a gun in his hand ready for trouble. They are all surprised as Pedro quickly takes several pictures of the group, before the van door is suddenly slammed shut and locked again.

Gemma and Tig exchange a puzzled look, and it goes quiet for a moment. They then hear the sound of the front doors to the van being opened as two of the men get back in. The engine of the van starts up and the vehicle heads out.

"How did you get caught?" asks Gemma to Lyla.

Lyla looks uncertain and is hesitant in replying.

"Lyla was picking us up from athletic practice..." advises Kenny.

Lyla finally finds her voice. "They rear-ended us. Next thing I know is they bundled me and the kids into a car and then we ended up here".

"Where's Piper?" asks Tara.

"At my mother's today" Lyla responds automatically; she then starts to cry again "Oh god, what do they want with us?"

Lyla's crying sets off Abel, although Tara tries to keep him quiet and calm.

"Lyla, if you don't stop that you won't have to worry about those men!" states Gemma, a hard tone in her voice. "You'll need to worry about what I'll do to you once we get out of this, if you don't stop snivelling. You need to be strong for Opie's kids..."

Ellie puts her arms around Lyla as if trying to help. "It's all right Lyla, daddy will come rescue us."

Lyla just nods as if trying to get herself under control.

"You're a good girl, Ellie" states Tig. Gemma is surprised; usually Tig didn't appear to take much notice of the kids belonging to the other members of the club.

Ellie gingerly smiles at Tig. "Daddy will find us, won't he, Uncle Tig?" she asks, uncertainty now showing in her voice.

"Sure!" assures Tig. "But he might need a little help. So, I've got an idea" He looks between Ellie and Kenny. "So which one of you is running in the school's track team?"

"I was only in the trials, Uncle Tig..." advises Kenny.

"So you can run fast, then?" asks Tig. Kenny just nods. "Well, could you come a bit nearer, Kenny? We need to have a chat. And Ellie too. We mustn't let the guys in front hear us..."

Gemma watches as Kenny goes down onto the floor so he is next to Tig. Tig begins to whisper his idea to Kenny, who nods as he understands. Gemma knew that Tig had one of his crazy ideas, and knowing him it might just work.

Ransom

It was half an hour before the garage was due to close on the Friday. Chuckie is covering the office as normal, and is going through accounts at the desk. A man walks in, and Chuckie looks up. The man is black, tall and muscled with a sweatshirt and jeans. He has a bulky leather jacket over his sweatshirt and a large envelope under his arms.

Chuckie stands up as if to greet the customer. "Sorry, we close in thirty minutes. Perhaps you could come back tomorrow? We're open Saturday mornings from nine till two..." explains Chuckie.

The man looks Chuckie up and down, pointedly looking at his mutilated hands as if not liking what he sees. "I need to speak to your boss, Clay Morrow..." he responds, an accent in his voice.

Chuckie recognised the accent as South African, but is not fazed. "Sorry, Clay doesn't normally deal with..." he begins.

The black man steps forward in an intimidating way as he interrupts. "I need to see him. Now!"

Chuckie starts to feel nervous, but realises that maybe he should let Clay deal with this. He quickly looks through the window on the door between the office and the garage, and notices that only Bull is in the workshop working on a car. Chuckie realises that Clay was probably in the club. "If you'd like to wait here" he exclaims "I'll see if I can go find him. Can I ask a name?"

"Just tell him I have some information for him" snaps the black man.

Chuckie decides to go through the door leading to the garage, rather than having to move around the black guy. He definitely felt uneasy about this man. The black man looked and felt wrong somehow, but Chuckie couldn't put his finger on it. He closes the door behind him.

The black man quickly looks around. He notices the phone on the desk, and quickly moves over to it. He follows the phone's cord to the wall and wrenches out the wire. He opens the zipper to his jacket, and takes out the gun hidden underneath in a holster. He clicks off the safety before putting in back, as if he was anticipating trouble.

In the meantime, Clay is in the club having a beer at the end of the day. Jax walks up to him, a cell in his hand. "Clay, you heard from mom?" he asks as he joins him at the bar.

"Nope, she's filling in for Nina this afternoon" he advises.

"I can't get hold of her. Or Tara..." advises Jax. He wasn't worried yet, but just wondering why neither of them were answering their cell phones.

"Probably both doting over the kids..." advises Clay. He was assuming that Tig was already on his way back to the garage.

"Yeah, I guess" responds Jax.

"We're not busy today, you might as well shoot off early..." advises Clay.

Jax turns around as if to take Clay up on his offer, but pauses when Chuckie enters the club-house.

"Clay, there's a gent to see you in the office..." exclaims Chuckie.

Clay raises his eyebrow. "If he's a customer, he can come back Monday" exclaims Clay "I'm finishing for the day..."

Jax adds "I'll deal with it..."

"He insisted on speaking to you, Clay. He said he had some information you might be interested in..." advises Chuckie.

Jax and Clay exchange a puzzled look. "Any idea who he is?" asks Clay.

Chuckie was surprised that Clay was asking his opinion. But the President of SAMCRO had started to trust him a lot more since he had been out of prison. "He's foreign. South African, I think. I dunno, he seemed kinda tough to me. But then, all of you guys seem tough to me..."

Jax smiles at Chuckie's attempt at a joke.

"Okay, let's go see..." agrees Clay. He heads out of the club, Jax and Chuckie following behind.

As soon as Clay enters the office, he knew that something was wrong with the guy that was waiting for them. There was something about the man who was leaning up against the desk, but Clay couldn't quite figure out what it was. For once he felt the absence of Tig, who normally was at his right-hand side and was pretty good at sussing out people and bad situations. However, there was some confidence that he had Jax at his back.

"You want something?" asks Clay.

The man looks pointedly at Chuckie, who had silently followed Jax into the office.

"Go take a walk, Chuckie" advises Clay. Chuckie hurriedly leaves, closing the office door behind him.

The man silently hands over the envelope in his hand. Jax moves up to stand next to Clay, and they exchange puzzled looks. Clay turns the envelope over and starts to pull out what was inside, which appears to be large photographs.

It is the people in the photographs that make his stomach go cold. There were three photographs in total, all showing Tig, Gemma, Tara, Lyla and the kids in the back of a van. The person who had taken the photographs had caught Tig looking worried and surprised, and it was obvious he had been beaten up. The photographs all had a date and time-stamp in the right-hand corner.

He quickly passes the photographs over to Jax, and then makes a sudden move. He swiftly reaches forward to grab the man by the jacket and pulls him forward. "I don't know who the fuck you..." he begins.

"Careful, Morrow" states the man. Clay feels something hard against his chest, and looks down to see a hand-gun held against him.

In the meantime, Jax finds himself initially shocked into stillness at the photographs. He reaches forward to help out Clay, fury also on his face. However, he stops when he realises Clay is being held at gun-point.

"We only have to shout and there'll be a dozen men in here..." states Clay, a hard tone in his voice You'll be dead inside a minute..."

"I want to avoid that, Morrow" states the South-African man. "Now, let me go and take a step back..."

Clay does so with reluctance. Jax gives the stranger a stare that would normally intimidate a normal man. "If anything happens to them..." begins Jax.

"Our hostages are safe for the moment, Teller. They'll stay safe and be returned unharmed once our demands are met..." interrupts the South-African man.

"We don't have much cash on the premises" advises Clay.

"Not after your money, old man. You will follow my request to the letter, or our prisoners will start to be hurt. I'm pretty sure you don't want that..." the man responds.

"What do you want?" asks Jax, realising that for the moment there was nothing they should do to anger this man.

"Firstly, you close up the garage. Everyone goes home except those I have on a list in my pocket. Those men will all be here just before dark, ready for the next instructions. Unarmed and no police involvement, or there will be consequences. Starting with the children first..." he exclaims.

"Shit!" swears Clay "How do we know you won't hurt them anyway?"

"It's the men on the list we want, Morrow. Once we have them, the kids and women will be released first thing in the morning..." explains the man.

"You expect us to believe that's gonna happen?" asks Jax.

"Your choice, kid. But unless I make a call in five minutes to confirm your agreement, then things are going to get bloody..." There is a cold note in his voice.

Jax and Clay exchange a glance. They both knew neither of them had a choice. "Agreed" advises Clay "But I'm telling you now that if anything happens to those women and kids..."

"Threaten all you like, old man. Not going to change the fact that if you want those people back unharmed you will do EXACTLY what you are told" he responds.

"Give us the list" agrees Jax.

The man looks at Clay and Jax, as if making a decision. He calmly puts his gun back into his holster, as he realises that neither man would take the chance of jumping him whilst he had the advantage. He pulls out a list from his top pocket, and offers it out to Jax.

Jax takes a quick look at the list, and is surprised. These were all members of SAMCRO, including himself and Clay. Tig's name had been crossed out. Jax tries to quickly recall who was around the club and garage. "Some of these men have already gone home..." he exclaims.

"Then get them back here now. You will lock up the garage completely; no-one else is to be here except those on the list. You will all ..." he starts to confirm.

"Not gonna happen that way" states Clay, thinking fast "We exchange the men for the women and children here, and then we'll follow your instructions".

"So you can set up a trap? This is going to happen our way or not at all, Morrow. You really want to put your wife and grandkids in danger?" responds the man, a confident tone in his voice.

Clay realises that the man – and whoever he worked for – had him and the club over a barrel. But it is Jax who interrupts "We'll do things your way. For now" he states.

"Good. One last instruction. Nobody except the men on the list are to be told what's going on. We have men watching some of the others in your club, and at the first hint of anything out of the ordinary then things could get ugly. We also know you have local law enforcement on the payroll, so we're watching your buddy Unser. You will close off the gates and all of those on the list will wait outside. No jackets, only tee-shirts so we can check you're unarmed. Got all that?"

Jax finds that he couldn't respond to the man, his head was trying to figure out a way out of this. He just nods in agreement. The man silently begins to move around them and heads towards the door.

"Who's behind this?" asks Clay. The man gives him an indifferent look. "If I'm going to probably end up hurt or dead, I'd like to know who's responsible..."

"You'll find out soon enough, Morrow. And don't try and have anyone follow me..." The man opens the door and saunters out.

Clay finds himself collapsing into the desk chair as it suddenly hits him as to how much trouble they were in. He was also anxious about Gemma. Jax peers out of the office through the closed blinds to watch the South-African man, who quickly gets into the car he came in and drives off.

"Shit! We have to do something..." swears Clay in frustration.

"For now, we have to follow their instructions" states Jax, who turns back around to Clay. Clay can see the disturbed and worried look reflected on his step-son's face.

"We can't chance getting anyone else in the club involved in this. Except for those mentioned on the list. But maybe we can get the Nevada charter to help..." ponders Clay.

"They'd take a few hours to get here, Clay. And it's dark in..." Jax looks at his watch "... maybe an hour and a half? And whoever these guys are, they know exactly what they're doing. I'm not even sure if Nevada could handle the situation..."

"Shit!" exclaims Clay, as his mind is in turmoil. "Do we have anybody else visiting right now?" he ponders to himself.

"Nah, it's coming up to the Holidays. All we have right now our own crew..." Jax suddenly pauses as if he has an idea. "...Kozik wasn't on the list."

Clay looks at him with a doubtful look. "He's taking a few days to go see his mother or something..."

"In L.A. Which means he's a whole lot closer than Nevada and probably not being watched? They may not even know he's part of SAMCRO, as he's not yet patched-in?" Clay nods in agreement.

At that moment, Chuckie opens the door between the garage and the office. It makes Jax jump. "Everything all right, Clay?" he asks, curiosity on his face.

"Out!" both men shout. Chuckie looks taken aback, and hurriedly closes the door as he turns around and leaves.

Jax head towards one of the filing cabinets; which held some of the brand new pre-paids. "You'd best ring the others, Clay. I'll ring Kozik."

Clay nods, finally glad for something to do. However, as Jax pulls out the pre-paids and hands one to Clay he has something to say to his step-son. "We're in the shit big time, you know that?"

"It could get real bad, Clay..." responds Jax. He couldn't hide his own concern about Tara, his mother and children.

Clay sighs, trying to shift his thoughts from his own worry about Gemma, Tig and everyone else. "Just glad you have my back, son..." he responds.

Escape

The van which held the hostages had been driving down a back lane for about half an hour, by Tig's reckoning. Definitely in the middle of nowhere; as the road was pot-holed and dust had got into the van from the road conditions. It was difficult to tell as there were no windows in the back of the van. The only light had come from the partition hole between the front and back of the van.

He'd discussed the plan between Ellie, Kenny and Lyla, who were all still free for the moment. He knew it was chancy, but figured it was the best they could do in the circumstances. He goes through the plan again in his head, trying to make sure everything was covered.

He is so busy thinking that it is Gemma who realises the vehicle is slowing up. "I think we're almost there..." she whispers. She had agreed with the plan, albeit reluctantly. Her main thought was that the biggest risk was being taken by Tig himself, as there was every chance he could get shot and possibly even killed.

Tig nods at Lyla and Kenny, who move quickly to pull and support Tig to his feet. He had to keep his head down to avoid banging it on the van roof. With Lyla's help he manages to shift himself so he is leaning against the back door of the van. Lyla was standing behind him, having already taken off her high-heeled stilettos. Ellie and Kenny sit on the ends of the seats nearest the back, turned towards the back doors and both looking nervous.

"Good luck, kids. Run real fast..." whispers Tig in encouragement.

The van stops, and they can all hear the front doors being opened and then slammed. They all wait as the seconds stretch out.

It is the Mexican called Pedro who warily opens the van doors with a gun in his hand, but he is still taken by total surprise. Tig shouts out and launches himself at the man, although for a split second he is disappointed that none of the other men are nearby. He falls on top of the Mexican to block him, yelling and making as much noise as possible. Pedro never has a chance to get off a shot, as he drops the gun with Tig's weight on him. The plan was that Tig would act as a defence between himself and the men with guns, whilst the others tried to make a run for it.

Behind him, Lyla, Kenny and Ellie all jump quickly out of the van as soon as Tig had launched himself. Tig had been very specific that they weren't to stop for him, but to run as far as possible. Each of them started to run in a different direction. They don't have much time to take a look around them, but they appear to be near an old abandoned house, situated in a large clearing in some woods. To one side is a high metal water tower, old and rusty.

However, the two other men were standing at the front of the van and turn around as soon as they heard Tig yell. They both see the woman and the two kids running away from the van. Without speaking, they both start to head out after two of the figures.

The brown-haired man is fit and well-built. He catches up to Lyla easily, and wrestles her to the ground before she can reach the trees. She starts to scream; and he back-hands her across the mouth to shut her up. She goes quiet as he gets off her and pulls her to her feet, and starts to drag her back towards the house and van.

In the meantime, the Mexican has managed to get Tig off him. He gets to his feet and collects his gun; before he kicks out at Tig to keep him still. However, Pedro winces as he hears the cry of Jax's second son, who had woken up at all the yelling and started screaming himself. Gemma was trying to calm him down, whilst Tara was keeping Abel calm as he had also started crying.

"Tig?" asks Gemma over her grandsons wailing.

"Okay, Gem" gasps Tig, who turns himself over to see what was going on. He can see Lyla, who is being pulled along towards the van by the brown-haired man. He looks around to see that Kenny, Ellie and the black-haired man have all disappeared into the trees. Two out of three wasn't bad.

"Shut those kids up" exclaims the brown-haired man as he pulls up at the back of the van. He pulls out a set of handcuffs from his pocket and pulls Lyla's arms behind her as he ties her up. He then lifts her over Tig's body to put her in the van. Tig can see Lyla has a nasty bruise on her face and is sobbing quietly.

"Here comes Brandon" exclaims Pedro, as he sees the black-haired man appear from the trees. He is pulling a struggling Kenny along with him. The brown-haired man glares at Pedro, as if he was not happy that the hostages now knew another of their captor's names.

Just as Kenny and his captor are approaching the van, there is the screech of tyres as the blue sedan appears from down the road and pulls up. It is driven by the Eastern-European, who quickly gets out of the car as he instantly assesses the situation.

"Trouble?" he asks.

"Tried to escape" responds the black-haired man, as he pulls Kenny along. Kenny, however, tries his best to hit out at the man holding him. Brandon laughs as he pulls him off his feet and starts to shake him.

"It's okay, Kenny. You did your best. Just co-operate and stay quiet now, okay?" exclaims Tig. Kenny goes still, but looks upset that he had been caught so easily.

The Eastern-European takes a quick look in the van, and turns around. "We are missing one?"

"Yeah, the fat kid..." agrees Brandon.

"My sister's not fat!" exclaims Kenny, but all of the men ignore him. Kenny finds himself being pushed back into the van, and the doors are shut behind him. It shuts off the sound of Abel and his brother, who were both howling by now.

The four men look at each other for a moment as they stand over Tig, and then look down at him lying on the ground. Tig offers them a large grin.

"You'll regret giving us so much trouble, Trager" states the brown-haired man.

"I will go find the young girl..." volunteers the Eastern-European "Which direction?"

None of the other men seem to want to volunteer to chase down Ellie, so Brandon nods towards where Ellie had headed into the trees. "You can track her?" he asks.

"Not a problem" he states, a cold grin on his face. The man quickly checks that he has his cell phone and gun on him. He turns around and starts to jog towards where Ellie had left the clearing.

"You do know about him?" states Pedro quietly to the others after the Eastern-European has disappeared into the trees. He looks at the other two men, and Tig is surprised to see that both of them swap a guilty look. There is an uncomfortable silence between the three men which gives Tig a real uneasy feeling.

"Let's get Trager in first" states Brandon finally. He leans forward and pulls Tig to his feet.

Tig struggles in his grip, but manages to turn towards the Mexican. "What?" he asks.

Pedro gives him an apologetic look. "The European is not exactly a good man. I heard stories about what he did to women and children in Serbia..."

"You've got enough of your own problems, Trager" adds the brown-haired man.

"Shit, man. Tell me!" Tig's uneasy feeling begins to turn to real worry. The brown-haired starts to pull him towards the ramshackle house, but Tig tries his best to dig his heels in. It doesn't work, and he finds himself being dragged towards the house as Brandon gives his colleague a hand.

The response by the Mexican makes Tig feel sick to his stomach. "I hear that he likes his women innocent and very young. Poor child..."

No Way Out

The sun was setting as the men stood outside of the locked gates to the garage. The garage and club were in complete darkness. The men were all wearing just tee-shirts and no sweatshirts or jackets, and in the chill of the oncoming evening most of them were getting cold.

Clay looks around at the rest of his brothers, who had all volunteered for this when they had found out that Gemma, Tara, Tig and the others were all hostages. They had all been puzzled as to why they were on the list; but Clay found himself feeling proud that none of them had balked at the thought of what they were walking into.

There was Juice and Happy. Juice was nervously jumping up and down as if trying to keep himself warm. Happy was completely the opposite, standing with a nonchalant stance with his hands in his pocket as if the cold didn't affect him.

Next to them stood his oldest comrades, Bobby and Piney. Both wore their cuts over their tee-shirts, as if making the point that whatever happened they would never take off the clothing that showed their loyalty to the club. Chibs was sitting on a nearby bollard, watching the others with a closed look on his face. For once he had not had much to say when he had heard the bad news, only that he had told Clay earlier that he would be there for him and club.

Opie and Jax were standing together to one side, Jax just finishing a call on his cell. It had taken a lot to calm Opie down after he heard his wife and kids had been snatched, and the anger and frustration still showed on his face.

Clay felt that there was someone missing. He notices the absence his Sergeant-at-arms, although he knew from the photographs that he was already a captive.

Jax finishes his call and walks over to Clay. "Kozik's still not answering. I've left him another message..."

Clay sighs. "Guess it's down to us, then..." He pauses as they can all hear the sound of vehicles coming down the road. This time of night it was pretty quiet around the area where the club was based, so Clay knew it was their visitors. Chibs gets himself up and moves to stand next to Opie.

Out of the oncoming darkness, three pairs of headlights show. It is not long before three dark vans pull up before the kerb in front of the gates. It is difficult to see who are in the vans, as they all have dark one-way glass.

Jax is the one to take a step forward, but pauses as the South-African man suddenly appears from the top one of the vans, with a semi-automatic in his hand. He was obviously standing up through an open sunroof.

"Turn around, gentlemen. Slowly" he advises.

The club members all slowly turn around; so that he can see none of them carry a gun in their belt or a gun holster. Bobby and Piney open out their SAMCRO jackets, so it can be easily seen that they are not carrying anything either.

The man looks down into the van. "Clear!" he states.

"Mercs..." states Happy, as he picks up on the way the man had said the all-clear. He whispers it low enough so that only his brothers can hear him.

Jax and Clay exchange a concerned frown. Mercenaries. What the hell did they want with the club?

A panel door opens on one of the vans, and the men are surprised to see that a young woman is pushed out of the van. They all recognise her as one of the women who hung around the club – in fact she was a favourite of Happy's. She looks upset as she finds herself standing in front of the men. They can all see she has been crying, and in her shaking hand she is carrying a plastic bag.

"Sweetheart?" asks Happy, an unusually soft and gentle tone to his voice.

"I'm sorry!" she exclaims. "They made me..."

Before she can say anything further, the South-African looks down from the top of the van and interrupts. "Cell Phones in the bag, boys. Then one of you at a time will enter the van. Don't forget we still have your wives and girlfriends, so don't try anything..."

"How many more hostages do you need?" Jax shouts up at the man.

"Enough to keep you guys quiet!" the man responds. He then nods towards the young woman, who is opening the bag in her hands even though her hands are still shaking.

Clay is the first to step forward, as he pulls out the cell in his pocket and drops it into the bag. He tries to give the woman a re-assuring look. What was her name? Trudy? Tracie? Something like that.

He then steps into the van. He is greeted by two men, one of whom has what looks like a black long wand in his hand. Clay recognises it as a metal detector, and he is given a quick once-over before the man nods for him to sit on the seat. Along the floor of the van are foot manacles, ready to put in place.

Clay knew then that it didn't look very good for any of the brothers from SAMCRO. These men were professional and knew exactly what they were doing. But he also knew one thing. If he – or any of his brothers – got out of this alive, all the men involved in this were corpses.

Helping Hand

It is fully dark as the old and battered pick-up drives along a back road. The truck is keeping under the speed limit, and the lights are fully on to see the road ahead. It is quiet, as there was little traffic along this road at night.

A small figure suddenly runs across the road, but abruptly stops halfway across. She is terror-stricken as the pick-up heads straight towards her. Ellie find's she can't move and closes her eyes, as the headlights bear down on her

The brakes of the truck are given a hard time, and screech as the truck finally pulls up. It slides round a-180 degrees and rapidly stops only less than a metre from Ellie. There is the sound of an engine being turned off and a door opening, as Ellie gingerly opens her eyes. She blinks as the headlights are bright and she can only see the outline of the figure that walks towards her.

"What the hell did you think you were doing running out like that!" exclaims an irate female voice.

Ellie bursts into tears. She couldn't help it, she had been running for so long and she was exhausted and cold. It had gotten dark really quickly, and she had run out into the road without realising. She was also crying in relief that it wasn't the man who had been chasing her for the last couple of hours that stood in front of her.

The woman slowly bends down to look at Ellie more closely. She is cautious and keeps her distance, as if trying not to frighten Ellie. "I'm sorry, kid. You gave me a hell of a fright..."

Ellie can see the woman more clearly now that she is not blocking the headlights. The young woman is wearing black jeans and a plain grey sweatshirt over a white tee-shirt. Her blond long hair is tied up into a ponytail. Ellie looks up into green eyes and a pretty face. The eyes are warm, sympathetic and oddly comforting. The woman lightly puts out a hand to Ellie's shoulder.

"What's wrong, sweetheart?" she asks, a kind tone to her voice. She suddenly finds Ellie in her arms, as the young girl reaches forward to wrap her arms tightly around the woman. Ellie finds her legs go out from under her, but the woman smoothly takes her weight and keeps her on her feet. "It's okay, it's all okay..." comforts the woman, as Ellie finds herself still crying and unable to say anything. The woman hugs Ellie to her, and gently strokes her hair.

She then notices that Ellie is not only crying but shivering. "Jesus, you're freezing! Let's get you in the truck..."

A male voice interrupts from the edge of the road, where he had appeared from out of the trees. "She is fine; I will take care of her..."

Ellie knows that voice. It was the man who had been chasing her. He had been calling out to her for the last hour. She finds herself shaking even harder, as she remembers what he had promised to do to her when he caught up with her.

The woman slowly straightens up, whilst still keeping a hand on Ellie. Ellie keeps hold of her and finds her arms around the woman's legs. The woman pulls Ellie behind her as she turns to confront the man, as if keeping herself between the man and the girl.

The man heads toward them. "The girl is my daughter..." he peers down at Ellie as he pauses "It is all right, Ellie, you can come home now..."

"I'm not!" squeaks Ellie from behind the woman's legs. Her voice is so hoarse and dry, and it is all she can say.

The man smiles, but the woman knows it is not genuine. The man looks back at the young woman, and is startled to see how pretty she was. He takes a step forward. "You should not take any notice, my daughter has some problems. Mental health problems, you understand? I will take her home and she will be fine..."

"I don't think so" states the woman, a hard and challenging tone to her voice.

The Easter European looks startled for a moment, not expecting any argument. Ellie starts to cry harder as she feels the woman gently disengage herself from her hold.

"I think that it might be best to take this to the local police station..." advises the woman.

The man smiles at her again, and suddenly pulls out the gun from his holster. "You could not have been co-operative? I would have let you go on your way" he states, as he takes a step further forward. "Now I will have to deal with the both of you, but it will be a pleasure..."

The woman stays still and does not respond. Because of the bright glare of the headlights, the European misses the steel that suddenly shows in the woman's green eyes. If he had seen her more clearly, he might have noticed the way she held herself ready.

"Come, Ellie" states the man, as he puts out his other hand towards the girl. Ellie finds herself sinking to her knees on the ground behind the woman, at the thought of going back with this man. "Ellie!" shouts the man, taking a step forward so he is close to the woman. He doesn't consider her any type of threat.

It puts him in range of the young woman, and he never knew what hit him. The woman brings up her fist and hits him hard across the face. With her other hand she smacks the gun away from his hand an instant later. She then brings up her knee, which hits him hard in the groin. He finds himself off his feet and half-leaning against the truck, dizziness and pain assailing him. Suddenly he finds himself grabbed by the front of his jacket. Before he can respond, she slams his head hard against the side of the pick-up and he is out cold before he finally hits the ground.

The woman quickly checks that the man is really out for the count, before turning around. Ellie was still kneeling on the ground but was looking up at the woman in astonishment.

"You all right? Ellie? Is that your name?" Ellie just nods, unable to say anything.

The woman pulls her to her feet, and Ellie puts her arms back around her and leans against the woman in weariness. She tries not to look at the horrible man lying in the road.

"I think we need to get you warmed up and something to drink..." says the woman, a confident tone to her voice.

Ellie leans her head into the woman's chest. "The man..." she croaks.

"He's not going to harm you, I promise. No need to be frightened, Ellie" the woman re-assures her.

She gently steers Ellie towards the cab of the pick-up. Before long Ellie finds herself huddling over the heater in the pick-up in the passenger seat. The woman's thick military-style coat is wrapped around her, as she tries to get warm. The woman had quickly found a bottle of water in her supplies that were in the back of the truck, and gives it to Ellie after opening the top for her. She joins Ellie in the cab, sitting in the driver's seat. Ellie gulps the water at first, and coughs.

"Slowly, Ellie. You're in shock, so drink it in sips..." advises the woman, a soft tone to her voice.

Ellie starts to take little sips, and starts to feel a bit better. The woman gently strokes her hair in comfort, and they remain quiet for a moment.

"Feeling better?" the woman asks.

Ellie is still shivering, but nods. The woman pulls out a cell phone from her pocket, and takes a look.

"Shit, no signal out here..." she states, as she puts the phone away.

"Daddy says it's not polite for a woman to swear" Ellie finds herself saying; in between taking sips of the water.

She shyly turns towards the woman, and is surprised to see her smile. The smile reaches her eyes, as if she found something amusing. "Your daddy's probably right. My apologies for swearing, it's not very nice."

Ellie suddenly sits up, as she begins to get over her shock. "Kenny! They've got my brother. And Aunt Gemma and Lyla!"

The woman picks up in the panic in the young girl's voice, and gently puts her arm around her. "It's okay, Ellie. You're not alone now. You okay for five minutes while I go check on the man? Then you can tell me everything?"

Ellie looks at the woman, and instinctively knows she can trust her. "You're nice. I like you..." she says shyly.

"That's very sweet of you, Ellie. Nobody's called me nice for a long time..." The woman removes her arm and reaches across to the glove compartment. She opens it, and Ellie is surprised to see that there is a bar of chocolate. Along with a hand gun. The woman reaches across and passes her the bar. "I keep a bar for emergencies. Eat a little bit at a time" she advises, after closing the glove box.

As Ellie sits and gets warmer, she watches the woman in between eating the chocolate and drinking the water. The blonde-haired woman has left the pick-up, and heads towards the prone figure of the man. She quickly searches him, and picks up the gun he had been carrying. She also finds a wicked-looking knife and a cell, and she puts all of the items into a box in the back of the truck. She then grabs the man by the arms and hauls him onto the side of the road. Ellie notices the woman isn't exactly gentle with the man who she was terrified of.

The woman then heads back to the cab, and gets in as she closes the driver-door. She leans over Ellie to make sure she had her safety belt on, before she turns over the pick-ups engine.

"Where are we going?" asks Ellie anxiously.

"I think it best we take you to the police station in Charming" explains the woman, as she puts the truck into gear. She reverses and then turns the truck around, and starts driving back towards town.

"What about ... him?" asks Ellie, after she takes more sips of the water. She had already finished the chocolate bar.

"Well, I don't think he's going anywhere soon. As soon as we get to the authorities, we can get them to come back and pick him up" responds the woman.

It goes quiet between them for a while, while the woman concentrates on driving but keeping the speed down. She keeps glancing at Ellie as if checking on her.

"Well, Ellie. My name's Jade. You want to tell me your full name?" asks the woman.

"Ellie Jayne Winston" advises Ellie.

"Winston? Any relation to an Opie Winston?" asks Jade.

"You know my daddy?" asks Ellie in surprise.

"We've met" advises Jade.

"Could you call him, please?" pleads Ellie.

"There's no signal out here, and I don't know his number. You can call him when we get to the police station?" she re-assures Ellie.

Ellie goes quiet, and finds herself wiping her eyes and sniffing. "Do you have a tissue?" she asks.

"I think there's a clean one in the coat pocket" Ellie looks through the coat that she is snuggled up in, and finds a clean tissue. She wipes her eyes and blows her nose.

"Okay?" asks the woman, as she quickly looks at her charge with a look of concern.

"Yes, thank you, Miss Jade" advises Ellie.

"It's just Jade, honey..." advises the woman. It goes quiet between them again. "You ready to tell me what happened?"

Ellie takes another sip of water, and tries to make sense of everything that had happened for the last few hours. She was exhausted and just wanted to go to sleep, but somehow knew that she needed to tell someone what had happened. "They were horrible men. They took us away and locked us up in a van..." she begins.

"Who exactly was taken and in the van? You said one of them was Kenny– he's your brother?" Jade interrupts.

"Yes, they took him and Lyla. Lyla's my new mummy. And there was Aunt Tara and Aunt Gemma..." Ellie pauses for a moment.

"And they had you all locked up?" prompts the woman gently.

"Yes, but we ran away when they opened the doors. Uncle Tig told us what to do..." she begins.

"Tig? Not Tig Trager?" interrupts Jade Hunter in astonishment as she glances at Ellie.

"I don't know what his real name is..." admits Ellie "... he doesn't say much to me and Kenny..."

The woman is quiet for a moment, as if in thought. "He has a short beard and dark, curly hair? And blue-eyes? A little crazy?"

"Yes, that's Uncle Tig. He's not crazy, he's funny and kind. Do you know him too?" asks Ellie, in complete innocence. She misses the astonished look on the young woman's face at the word 'kind'.

"Let's just say our ... paths have crossed" admits Jade with a brief smile on her face. She looks sideways to look at the girl who was trying her best to be brave, and notices the puzzled look on her face. She decides to change the subject. "Was there anybody else in the van?"

"Yes, there was Abel. He's Uncle Jax's son, I play with him sometimes. And Thomas; Aunt Tara's his mummy..." she advises.

"You seem to have a lot of Aunts and Uncles" states Jade. She realises she needed to keep the girl talking.

"They're not my real Uncles and Aunts, but they're all nice" advises Ellie "And I have a real grandpa too, he works with daddy..."

"Did you notice how many ... men there were? That took Kenny and the others?" enquires Jade.

"I think three" confirms Ellie.

"Including the man who chased you?" asks Jade. It goes quiet and she turns her head and notices that Ellie is silently weeping again.

Jade slows down the pick-up, and pulls the truck to one side of the road before putting on the brake. She silently reaches her arm around Ellie, who leans against her. "It's okay, Ellie. You're safe now. I promise he won't hurt you..."

Ellie puts her arms around Jade and continues to sob. It is quiet for a few minutes as Jade lets the young girl get it out of her system. "He said cruel things..." states Ellie, in between her sobs. Jade stays silent, as she realises that Ellie needed to tell her what had happened in her own time. "When I was hiding from him. He shouted my name and said he would do awful things to me. I didn't understand all he said, he spoke sometimes in a funny language."

Jade gently brushes the girl's hair as she holds onto her in comfort. "I know, sweetheart. Sometimes men can be beasts. Everything will be all right now..."

"I want daddy!" exclaims Ellie.

"You'll see him real soon, I promise. You're lucky to have a daddy and mummy" advises Jade "And all those uncles and aunts! You have a real big family..."

"Do you have a big family, too?" asks Ellie, a she pulls herself away from Jade. Ellie starts to feel better again, and begins to get over her fright after talking to Jade about it. She takes out the tissue from the coat pocket and wipes her eyes.

She is surprised to see the sad look across Jade's face for a moment, but then the woman looks away as if embarrassed as she puts the pick-up back in gear. "No, Ellie. Not everybody is as lucky as you..."

The Chief

It is just over two hours since Jade Hunter and Ellie had reached the police station. Both of them were now in the conference room, which overlooked the car park. On the table there was what was left of a burger and fries, which Ellie had eaten hungrily twenty minutes previously. She was now fast asleep on the sofa, still wearing Jade's coat and now also covered with a blanket.

Jade Hunter was pacing up and down, trying to curb her impatience. She looks through the internal blinds to once again see what the police and the ATF agent were up to. It had gotten busy when Ellie had told her story, but she can see that the main office had a lot of police still going in and out.

However, so far no-one had bothered to let her or Ellie know what was going on. Jade had worked with police authorities before; but even the Charming Police seem to not know what the hell they were doing. She didn't have a lot of faith in local back-water Police at the best of times. The ATF didn't seem that much better, and the main agent didn't seem that concerned about the women and children being kidnapped.

She moves up to stand before the large map of Charming that was on the back wall, and looks at it with her face in deep thought. She turns around when she hears the door being open, and surprise shows on her face for a moment as an old man in civilian clothes walks in.

"Mrs Hunter?" asks Unser, surprised to see that the woman was young and pretty. Something the new ATF guy had not mentioned to him just now, as he had been updated about the situation.

The woman just nods towards Ellie, as if advising Unser he needed to stay quiet whilst she was asleep. He raises his eyebrow as she moves to the window and looks out over the car park, and then realises that she had moved there so they could talk away from Ellie. He steps up to stand next to her.

"I'm Chief Wayne Unser..." he begins quietly, as they both look out the window.

"You the one in charge?" she asks, and Unser is surprised by her directness.

"Well, not exactly. The ATF have taken over the case; I'm semi-retired until they appoint a new Sherriff. But they've called everyone in to assist..." he states.

"I'd like to know what's going on..." advises Jade. "Since Ellie told her story, they haven't told us much. Apparently they can't get hold of her father yet?"

"Well, I've only just been updated myself on the current situation..." admits Unser.

"They pick up the guy that was chasing Ellie?" she asks.

"You gave a good location, but when the Uniforms had got there, he'd gone. They did a quick search, and they saw where you'd skidded on the road, but they didn't find anything else..." responds Unser.

"What else did they tell you?" asks the woman.

Unser pauses before responding. He didn't like the way the woman was interrogating him, she was pretty quick at cutting in and asking a lot of questions. "Look, Mrs Hunter..." he begins.

She turns to him with a look of irritation on her face. "No disrespect to you, Chief Unser. But the ATF don't appear to be giving this their best effort. I get the distinct impression that they're not exactly running over themselves to find the people who were taken."

Unser looks taken aback for a moment; he'd been pretty much thinking the same thing himself "The club isn't exactly on the best of terms with the authorities, Mrs Hunter..." he sighs.

"Shouldn't matter if innocent children and women are in trouble" she states, as she looks at him directly in the eye. "I'd like to help, but I need more information before I can do anything..."

Unser looks bewildered for a moment; he wasn't sure exactly how this pretty young woman with startling green eyes would be of any help. But he has worked in law-enforcement for a very long time, and his gut tells him that he should trust her. "What do you want to know?" he finds himself saying.

"They going to do a perimeter search from where I found Ellie?" she asks.

"ATF plan to set up a search come first light..." he states.

She looks annoyed again. "Can't be bothered to start the search in the dark, is my guess. The longer the search is left, the harder it will be to find any fresh tracks..."

Unser is surprised at the confident tone in her voice. It was almost as if she had experience in something like this. "Yeah, the thought had crossed my mind too. They're planning to do a perimeter search about two miles around the area, first thing in the morning..."

"Ellie's a pretty brave kid; and she'd been running for several hours. I'd say the perimeter is more likely to be between five to ten miles" muses Jade. "Possibly nearer to seven or eight miles, as she spent some time hiding from the guy chasing her"

Unser is again surprised that she seems to know exactly what she was talking about, and decides to be as direct with her as she had been with him. "Why do I get the impression that you know what you're talking about? You in law enforcement?"

Jade sighs, as if reluctant to discuss her past. "I was in the ... military" she states.

"You did a tour in Iraq?" asks Unser. It started to make sense to him, especially as he had heard she had taken down the guy when he had tried to take away Ellie. It also explained the way she seemed to be so confident about the situation.

Jade just shrugs, as if it wasn't any of his business.

Unser looks towards Ellie, who is still fast asleep. "How is she? She must be missing her parents and brother pretty badly..."

"She's a brave kid. You know her family?" responds Jade.

"Yeah, me and the club have a ... I guess you could say a history" he admits.

Jade looks at him as if she understood there was a very long story behind his comment. "Ellie said she had a lot of 'aunts and uncles' in the club. I'm guessing there's a reason nobody's come to pick her up yet?"

"The garage has been closed up; nobody's there. We've left a couple of Uni's outside, but the boys from the club seem to have completely disappeared. We have local police checking the local homes, but nothing has come back so far. They've already confirmed Ellie's story; Gemma, Lyla and Kenny have disappeared together with Jax's kids. They already had a missing person report about Doctor Knowles; someone found a handbag and car-keys abandoned by her car at the Hospital."

It goes quiet between them for a moment.

"You sound worried" advises Jade, curiosity in her voice.

"No shit, lady. Yeah, I'm worried. SAMCRO may not always be popular with this town, but they look after Charming and its residents. But this whole thing is way beyond me..." he responds.

"Do the bad men have my daddy?" interrupts a soft and upset voice from the sofa.

They both turn around to see that Ellie has woken up. They exchange looks that she may have heard some of their conversation.

"We just haven't found him yet, sweetheart" advises Unser, as he steps towards the little girl. She looks up at him from where she is now sitting, the blanket left on the sofa. He can see she is obviously distressed, and sits down next to her.

However, she stands up and looks towards Jade who has a sympathetic look on her face. "Will you go find my daddy? And help Kenny and the others too?" she asks.

"Ellie, I'm not sure Mrs Hunter..." Unser begins.

Jade steps towards the young girl, and Unser is surprised to see Ellie wrap her arms around the young woman. He didn't know Opie's daughter very well, but he'd always had the impression that Ellie was pretty quiet and withdrawn around people she didn't know. Jade hugs her in response, and Unser can see she has a concerned look on her face.

"Please, Jade. You have to help them..." pleads Ellie. Unser isn't sure why Ellie seems to be so confident that this young woman could do anything to help.

Jade sighs before responding "I'll do my best, Ellie"

Ellie pulls back and looks up at the woman. "Promise?"

"I promise, Ellie. I will do everything in my power to get your family back to you." Unser picks up on the determined and resolute note in her voice.

"We'll both help out, Ellie..." adds Unser.

Ellie turns and shyly smiles at him, still holding onto Jade's hand.

"Sit down for a minute, Ellie. I need to ask you something" Jade suddenly requests. She leads Ellie to sit back down on the sofa, and Unser looks on as she bends down so she is face-to-face with the little girl.

"I want you to close your eyes..." she advises with a gentle tone to her voice and keeping Ellie's hand in hers.

"Why?" asks Ellie.

"Trust me, Ellie. In order to help your family and the others, I need your assistance. Close your eyes..." she responds.

Ellie looks at Chief Unser as if seeking assurance, and then looks back to Jade before she closes her eyes tightly.

"Now, I want you to think about just before you got out of the van. Picture it in your mind. It's dark in the van, isn't it?" Jade's voice is low and even.

"Yes" replies Ellie in a whisper.

"And when the van door is opened, who gets out first?" prompts Jade.

Ellie is quiet for a moment, her brow frowning in concentration. "Uncle Tig jumps out first. That was his idea; he said he was going to keep the bad men busy..."

"Is he tied up?" asks Jade.

"Yes, we had to help him stand up. He makes a lot of noise when he jumps out..." responds Ellie.

"Who jumps out next?" directs Jade, as if to keep Ellie from getting too distracted.

"Lyla gets out next. She was standing behind Uncle Tig..." advises Ellie.

"What happens then?" asks Jade.

"Me and Kenny jump out together, and start to run in different directions..." confirms Ellie.

"Now Ellie, I want you to think back for a minute. I want you to try and remember the first thing you see when you get out of the van, before you started to run. Where are you?" enquires Jade.

"There are trees all around us..." she responds.

"Is there a road?" asks Jade.

"Yes, I can see it! I think we're in the middle of a forest. The road comes out from in between the trees."

"Was it worn? Lots of holes in it?" queries Jade.

"Yes, it was very bumpy before we stopped" confirms Ellie.

"Now, I need you to concentrate, Ellie. Are there any buildings?" comments Jade.

"Yes, an old house. It looks dirty and one of the windows is smashed. It has blue tiles on the roof, but some have fallen down..." advises Ellie.

"Now, take a good look around. You haven't started running yet. What else can you see?" prompts Jade.

"Two men are standing in front of the van. The other ones fallen under Uncle Tig..." she responds.

"Ignore them for the moment, Ellie. Are there any other buildings or anything else? A shed or a garden wall? Anything other than the house and the trees?" asks Jade.

"There's a ... I don't know what to call it, Miss Jade..." advises Ellie with an upset tone to her voice.

"It's all right, Ellie. You're doing very well. Now, can you try and describe what you're looking at?" asks Jade gently.

Unser finds himself holding his breath. Shit, this woman was good. She knew exactly what to ask Ellie, even though she was just a kid.

"It's all brown and rusty, I think. It has pillars and there's a big bowl-like thing at the top..." advises Ellie, trying her best to describe the picture in her head.

"Is it tall? Higher than the house?" asks Jade.

"Yes! It's really high. I can see... I can see writing on it as I run past. It says CLWC!" Ellie opens her eyes as she suddenly remembers. The she looks chagrined that she had opened her eyes, but Jade just gives her a quick hug.

"Good girl, Ellie! It's all done, now. You did very well" she advises.

"What was it, Miss Jade?" asks Ellie

"Old Metal Water Tower" states Unser, with sudden conviction. Jade turns her head to look at the Chief with her eyebrow raised. "Haven't been used round her for over forty years, which is why Ellie wouldn't have known what it was. The Charming and Lodi Water Corporation went bust decades ago..."

"I remembered!" advises Ellie, wonder in her voice.

Unser notices the thoughtful look cross Jade's face for a moment, but she turns back to Ellie. "I need you to do one more thing for me, Ellie" as she releases the girls hand and stands up again. "There's a police woman waiting just outside the door. I want you to go ask her to take you to the ladies..."

"But I don't need to go..." advises Ellie.

"Do you think you can pretend?" asks Jade, a smile on her face.

Ellie looks up at Jade and returns the smile. "Do you want me to take a long time?"

"You're a bright girl, Ellie. Now, I might not be here when you come back. But don't worry, it's just so I can go find your brother and the others..." adds Jade.

Ellie suddenly hugs Jade, with tears in her eyes. "Thank you, Jade!" she exclaims.

"You're welcome, honey" responds Jade, hugging her back.

She then releases Ellie, and turns to open the door for her. Outside, the police woman turns around as Ellie walks out. "Please, can you take me to the toilet?" she asks.

"What, again?" asks the young police woman, walking away with her. Jade firmly closes the door behind her, as Unser gets himself up from the sofa.

"I could probably get a copy of the CLWC records from Mayor Hale. His grandfather part-owned the company. Might take a couple of hours to go through the paperwork..." states Unser.

However, as he is talking Jade steps up to the large map on the wall, and he pauses as he notices she is running her hand over a section of it. "I already know the location..." advises Jade.

"What!" responds Unser, astonishment in his voice.

Jade turns around, as she explains. "I was on my way home from Lodi when I came across Ellie, Chief Unser. About ten miles out. I've pretty much run in most of that area over the last few months. I remember seeing a house with a water tower a few weeks back. The place was abandoned and just as Ellie described, and I remember seeing the water tower from the woods..."

Unser finds himself getting over his astonishment, as he heads towards the door. "Then we need to let the ATF know..."

"Not a good idea" states Jade. Unser stops in his tracks, and turns towards her. She raises her eyebrow as if trying to state the obvious. "What do you think the ATF will do with the information?"

"Well, they would..." Unser pauses as it suddenly dawns on him what she meant "... probably go in heavy-handed..."

"Which ends up being a hostage situation or someone gets hurt or killed when the police and ATF start shooting..." she adds "Not a good idea with children and women as prisoners."

"What do you suggest?" asks Unser.

"I go take a look first..." she advises.

"I'll come with you..." interrupts Unser. He sees the look of surprise on her face at his volunteering so quickly.

"No disrespect, Chief Unser" states Jade with a hard look in her eyes. It makes Unser pause. "But I can handle this better on my own."

"Ellie said there were three men, possibly four..." states Unser, worry in his voice.

He is again taken by surprise as he notices the large grin on her face. "You have to trust me on this, Chief. I can handle the situation. My place is on the way; so I can pick up some ... equipment first"

Wayne Unser was never sure afterwards why he felt confident that she knew what she was talking about. Or why he agreed to her plan. "I'm not sure about this..." he starts to argue with her.

"Look, could you stay with Ellie? She needs a friendly face around right now. Give it, say, an hour before passing the information to the ATF? By then I'd have scoped out the place." She turns towards the map on the wall, and puts her hand out to point to the location. Unser steps up to stand next to her and takes a good look at the map. "The house is here."

"I didn't know there was even a residence there..." he muses.

"It's definitely where I went running" she confirms as she puts down her hand "I'm pretty sure I can find it from the road, even in the dark."

Unser sighs as he realises that he wasn't going to be able to argue with this woman; she seemed pretty determined. "Okay, but promise me you'll ring me if you get into trouble? I'll call in the cavalry. Just dial 911 and you'll get put through to the local switchboard. I'll ask them to put you straight through to me?"

Jade doesn't look happy, but nods in reluctant agreement. She steps towards the door of the room as if to leave, but Unser stops her for a moment.

"Why are you doing this?" he asks. "I mean, it's not as if you know anyone from SAMCRO."

"I made Ellie a promise, Chief. I keep my word" she states as she puts her hand out as if to open the door.

"Okay, let me distract the guys in the main office first. You think you can sneak out?" asks Unser.

Jade just grins at him. Unser smiles back at her; he was always a sucker for a pretty face. He then moves around her to open the door.

It is several minutes later that Jade can hear a noisy argument going on in the main office. She recognises the Chief's loud voice, as she quietly lets herself out of the police station. Nobody notices her leaving.

Rock Bottom

Alex 'Tig' Trager slowly comes too with reluctance. He was having such a nice dream, and the reality of the situation he was in makes him feel frustrated and also desperate. He didn't remember much about the dream, as he was still feeling light-headed. All he could remember about the dream was that the woman had pretty green eyes.

The men had decided to keep him separate from the women and kids, and had eventually put him in the separate back room of the old house. His arms were tied together and the rope passed over a sturdy beam in the ceiling, to which they had pulled him up so that he could barely touch the ground with his feet. They had tied the other end to the wall, so he was held up by the rope. His arms had hurt at first at being stretched out, but eventually they had just gone numb.

They'd all taken turns at beating the shit out of him, and he was pretty sure he had at least a couple of busted ribs along with a ton of bruises along his chest and across his face. He had done his best to kick out at them, despite his bound feet. Eventually they had put a scarf around his eyes so he couldn't see anything. Although he knew he had got in at least one good kick in when he'd heard one of the men nearby grunt as his feet felt something solid.

He remembered he'd made a lot of shouted promises about what he was going to do to all of them when he got free, but they'd pretty much ignored his comments. Eventually, he'd decided to save his breath. He ached from head to foot, and his head was pounding from lack of sleep and thirst. It wasn't the physical pain he was worried about, though. He'd had worse. It was the thought of what that bastard had done to Ellie that disturbed his thoughts.

The Eastern European had turned up a few hours ago, and Tig had overhead the conversation on the back porch with the other men. Pedro had asked where the girl was, and the European had just said 'it had been taken care of'. The bastard had then decided it was his turn to thrash Tig, who had taken the beating as if it was punishment that he deserved.

It was the remorse that was bearing down on him that hurt more than the physical pain. He realised that it was his fault that Ellie had probably been raped and killed by the Eastern European man, her body left in the woods to rot. If he hadn't come up with the plan she would be alive now. She was Donna's and Opie's daughter, and the guilt that wracked him was like a hot coal in his stomach. Now he had killed both females in Opie's family; and the remorse that he had buried for so long after Donna's death had come back to haunt him with a vengeance.

He starts to feel physically sick at the thought of what he had done, but bites back the bile in his throat. There was no way he would ever forgive himself for this. If it took the rest of his life, he would try to make this up to Opie and Kenny. But how could he make up for the loss of a sweet kid he had gotten killed?

His thoughts are interrupted by the soft sound the back door opening. He knew then that one of the men had come back for some more; or they were finally going to finish him off. His body goes rigid as he waits. There is the sound of a footfall just by him, and he suddenly finds the energy to lash out with his bound feet, although it hurts when he takes the full weight of his body on his arms.

His feet meet empty air, but he can hear someone take a hasty step back.

"Hey, I'm on your side, Mr Trager" advises a low and soft female voice. A voice that he vaguely recognises from somewhere...

"What the ..." he responds hoarsely.

"Ssssh!" whispers the female voice. "Quiet, or they'll hear us!"

Tig suddenly recognises the voice, and he is so astounded at first that he is speechless

"If you could please stay still, I'll try and get you free" adds the voice.

"Shit, I must be fucking dreaming!" he finds himself saying, keeping his voice low in response. "That you, Mrs Hunter..."

"Appreciate if you could keep the language and the noise down, Mr Trager..." she responds.

Tig felt like he could laugh out loud, but finds he no longer had the energy. He suddenly feels a hand on his face, and he blinks as the scarf around his eyes is pulled away. The room is dark, but there is some illumination from the windows and open back-door from the moonlight. He finds himself go still as his sight starts to come back, and he is staring into beautiful green-eyes that are inches from him and returning his stare.

For one long moment he loses himself in those eyes, and is disappointed as she takes a step back and moves her glance away.

"You think you could stand if I cut the rope holding you up?" she whispers.

"Give it a go, darlin'..." advises Tig.

He was waiting for her to frown at him at his response, but her face remains still as she pulls out a wicked-looking knife from the sheaf at her side. As she moves to the rope between the beam and the wall, Tig notices what she is wearing.

She is wearing black jeans and a military camouflage jacket over a grey tee-shirt, and combat boots on her feet. She had a spare gun tucked in the back of her belt. The jacket was open to show a holster carrying a hand gun on the other side from the knife sheaf. Her blond hair was tucked up under a black cap, and her face was streaked with black and green camouflage make-up so that her cheeks and forehead did not reflect any reflection from the bright moonlight. Across her back is a heavy and bulky rucksack. It dawns on Tig that she wouldn't have been out of place in a combat zone. Happy had been right, she definitely had a Military background.

She grabs hold of the rope, and turns towards him before cutting the rope with her knife. "Ready?" she asks.

Tig nods. She hacks at the rope, and suddenly he finds the tension easing. However, pins and needles assail his arms as the blood rushes through them. He finds his feet don't feel any better, and he stagers. The rope falls from his hands, and before he falls forward on his face, she has moved quickly and quietly to his side to support him. He finds one of his arms go around her shoulders and he takes a moment to steady himself, as she takes his full weight.

He turns his head to look at her. "We have to stop meeting like this, sweetheart..." he states and grins at her. He begins to move his face closer to hers. "I could so kiss you right now..."

She gives him a disgusted look and abruptly pulls herself away from him. He just about manages to stay upright, but he sways a little. In the meantime, the woman heads towards the one chair in the room that doesn't look like it will collapse under his weight. She picks it up and brings it behind Tig, before putting it down. He gratefully sits himself down and takes a minute to rest

He closes his eyes for a brief moment, and runs his free hand through his hair. He opens his eyes to find a water bottle being silently offered out to him. He gratefully takes it from her, realising she must have pulled the water out from her rucksack. He looks up at her with a grin, before opening the bottle and taking several large swallows. "Thought there was a guard on the back porch?" he croaks; his voice still hoarse.

"Taken care of" she responds quietly "Are there just the four men in total?"

"Yeah, haven't seen anybody else..." he informs her.

"The other two are fast asleep in the vehicles. There's one man sitting in the front room watching a portable TV, so we gotta keep it quiet..." she advises.

"Must be guarding the basement; I think that's where they're keeping Gemma and the others..." he confirms. He remembers overhearing one of the men say they he had locked up the women and children in the cellar. He looks down at his feet, which were still bound up tight by a rope and also duct tape. "Mind cutting me out of this?" he asks, looking back up at the woman.

The woman pulls out the knife from the sheaf at her belt, flips it over and offers it to him hilt-first. She raises her eyebrow, and Tig has the strongest feeling that she was expecting him to make some sexual comment about her not wanting to kneel down in front of him to cut him free.

He puts down the water bottle on the floor, whilst he takes the knife from her. He leans down to saw through the bindings himself, whilst she moves to stand by the door. She looks out of the back door as he finally cuts himself free, as though checking nobody else was around. Tig puts the knife into his own knife-sheaf, as he gingerly gets to his feet.

He finds he has to hold onto the chair to keep himself upright, and tries to take several steps. His feet don't collapse from under him, and he unsteadily walks up to stand beside her. He leans up against the door frame as she turns back towards him. His ribs are still aching from the work-out their captors had given him; but he just does his best to ignore the pain.

"You okay to stay here while I deal with the other men?" Jade asks confidently.

Tig had a feeling she was quite able to do exactly what she says, but realises he didn't want her to leave quite yet. "Nah, I'd like to take some of those men down myself. I owe that Eastern-European bastard..."

"You really up to this?" she asks, and he is surprised to hear the concern in her voice.

"Sure, sweetheart. Just give me a couple of minutes to get my bearings..." he asks.

It goes quiet between them for a few seconds.

"The Serbian's asleep in the van" advises Jade, and Tig picks up the cold and harsh tone in her voice. "That one's mine..."

"How do you know he's Serbian?" asks Tig.

"Recognised the accent" she advises.

A thought suddenly goes through Tig's head. It was not something he wanted to think about, but he realised he needed to know. "I'm pretty sure these guys are all mercenaries" he states. She looks at him, but does not nod or shake or head in agreement. Tig looks at her as he asks the hard question. "You a Merc, too? That how you know this guy was Serbian? And how you took me and Kozik out last month?"

Her response is not what he expects. Her eyes have an angry fire in them as she peers at him and her mouth goes hard. Since he had met her he had never had to look away from those pretty green eyes, but suddenly finds himself having to force his gaze towards the dark area outside the back.

"If you weren't already beaten up, Mr Trager, I would kick the shit out of you for suggesting that..." she exclaims. Her angry tone makes him realise that he has made a grave mistake. It was also the first time he had heard her swear, and it dawns on him that she was real pissed at his question.

He looks back towards her, ready to apologise. However, she moves her own gaze away and looks out into the woods. He gets the distinct impression she was trying to get her anger under control as it goes uncomfortably quiet between them.

"Sorry, doll..." he states softly "I had to be sure you weren't involved with this somehow..."

She sharply turns back towards him, still looking angry "The only reason I'm involved in any of this, is because I almost ran over Ellie..."

Tig finds his body go rigid in shock. "Shit, Ellie's still alive!"

"Well, yes, she..." begins Jade, her anger beginning to fade. However, she pauses as she notices him suddenly slump against the door frame.

"Please tell me she wasn't hurt..." he asks. She seems surprised at the anxious tone his voice.

"Apart from being exhausted and cold, she's fine. She's a tough little girl..." the woman responds.

Tig looks into the women's eyes, which are now showing puzzlement at his reaction to the news.

"Jesus, I thought..." begins Tig, and then pauses as his voice cracks "... I thought the Serbian bastard had raped and killed her and left her body in the woods. That her death was all my fault..." he pauses again as the woman's pretty green eyes change to compassion and understanding.

"She's perfectly safe, Mr Trager. She's at the police station right now. A Chief Unser's looking out for her..." informs Jade.

Tig finds himself closing his eyes for a moment in pure relief. For an odd moment he sees a picture in his head of how Donna had looked slumped over a steering wheel with blood on her hair. It takes a great deal of effort to push down the guilt that still assailed him; even though he was thankful Donna's daughter was okay. Not something he could deal with right now, and he takes a deep breath as though trying to get himself under control. He opens his eyes as the young woman speaks.

"I really don't like men who harm innocent women and kids" she states "Especially men who like to abuse children..." Tig picks up in the rock-hard tone of her voice.

"Me neither, swe... Mrs Hunter. I'd like a chance to get hold of him myself..." He looks back at her and offers a smile, but with his sore face it comes out as a grimace. "Maybe we could share him..."

She looks at him as if in agreement, and he notices the cold smile on her lips. "I think we'll both be having a little chat with him, Mr Trager..." she confirms.

She pulls out the handgun from behind her belt, and offers it to him in silence. He takes it, as he realises it had probably been taken off the man she had already dealt with. He finds himself checking that the gun was loaded, and just as he clicks the safety off he pauses as he hears her speak again.

"Jade" she states.

"Sorry?" asks Tig, as he puts the gun into his own belt.

"My first name. If you're gonna keep calling me sweetheart or doll, I'd prefer you at least call me by my own name..." she states.

"Tig" he responds.

She raises her eyebrow at him, and he gets the distinct impression she found something amusing for a moment. Why the hell did she think his name was funny?

He stares at her as it remains quiet again between them, and this time she returns his gaze. The connection he had felt with her before was stronger this time; but it dawns on him that this wasn't the time or the place. He pulls his gaze away as he pushes himself away from the door frame, trying not to wince as his bruised body protests at the movement.

"You still crazy, Mr Trager?" she asks softly.

"Nah, just Crazy-Mad right now, Mrs ... Jade" he responds "That these men got one over me like that." A thought suddenly hits him. He would have thought of it earlier if he hadn't been feeling light-headed from the pounding his head had taken. "Shit, I need to let Clay know what's going on. You got a cell I can borrow?"

"According to Chief Unser, your ... friends ... have all disappeared. The authorities found your club empty and are checking..." she advises.

"Fuck! Then they must be in trouble too..." he interrupts.

It goes quiet between then again, as the implications hit Tig.

"My guess would be the women and kids were taken as insurance. Kept separate; so that the men would co-operate?" Jade suggests.

Tig nods in agreement. It all started to make sense now. "You know which members of SAMCRO have disappeared?" he asks.

"Sorry, Chief Unser didn't say..." she confirms.

Tig's shakes his head, as if trying to clear it. He puts his hand though his hair, wincing as he catches a bruise on his forehead. "Then I guess all we can do is help the women and kids first..." he begins.

"... and then see if any of the kidnappers know the location of the others from the club" Jade finishes.

She begins to move away from the back door, heading towards the front of the building. Tig begins to follow her, as he pulls the gun out from his jacket. He takes the time to watch her for a moment, and picks up how she moves like a cat. Quietly and with stealth, her head tilted to one side as if listening for any noise or movement. He smiles to himself as he catches up with her.

Payback

The Eastern European and the man who called himself Brandon were each in one of the vehicles, taking the opportunity to rest and get some sleep. The Serbian had won the coin-toss and was wrapped up in a blanket in the back of the van. The man called Brandon was lying asleep across the back of the sedan, his coat wrapped around him.

Brandon was a light sleeper, and feels a cold draught on his shoulders as the door to the sedan by his head is suddenly opened. He abruptly wakes up, but before he can even move, he feels a gun against the top of his head. "Still!" advises a hoarse whisper. It takes a moment before he recognises it as Trager's voice.

The other door is silently opened, and a hand reaches in. The man only has a brief look at the young woman who was looking down at him, before she reaches forward. In her hand there is what looks like a hypodermic needle gun, and before he knew what happens she pushes it down into his leg. He is out for the count in seconds.

Tig quietly pulls the gun away, and swaps it to his left hand. With his right hand he gives Brandon a vicious right-hook with his fist across his face, as if making sure the man was unconscious. He looks up to notice that Jade is looking at him from the other side of the vehicle. He smiles at her when he sees she has an irritated look on her face. He got the impression she was annoyed that he'd unnecessarily hit the man, but he wasn't going to apologise. He reckoned Brandon had gotten off easy after the punishment he'd gone through at this bastard's hands.

The woman quietly takes out her gun and heads towards the van, after closing the sedan door. Tig closes the other door and rushes up to beat her to the van. He puts his hand over hers, and shakes his head at her as her hand closes on the van door. He tries to communicate to her that he wanted to do this, but it was difficult without saying anything. She stares at him for a moment, and then pulls her hand away. He suddenly realises that she had silently understood him.

The Serbian never knew what hit him for the second time that night. He wakes up suddenly to find Trager looking down with a gun pointed at him with his left hand. Before the man can do or say anything; Tig hits him even harder than he had with the other man and knocks him out.

"Payback's a bitch..." whispers Tig. Jade looks on with a patient look on her face, from the open van door. She pulls out the hypodermic gun from her pocket, but Tig turns to her as he moves away from standing over the Serbian. He shakes his head. "I need him awake..." he advises.

"I've reduced the dosage. He'll only be out for an hour..." she advises.

He nods at her in agreement and gets himself out of the van, as she quickly and efficiently sticks the man with the needle.

They both confidently head towards the front of the house with their guns in their hands. Jade moves to one side, so she is kneeling just below the unbroken window. Tig stays put and leans himself up beside the door against the siding. He watches as Jade quickly puts her head up to check the window. She then turns towards Tig and shakes her head. He finds himself moving quicker than he thought despite his bruised and battered body, as he stands in the doorway with his gun ready.

The front room is empty. There is a dusty sofa, together with a chair opposite a portable TV; its volume turned down. But the last man is not in sight. Jade joins him at the doorway.

"Basement?" whispers Tig.

"Only three rooms" she responds "Entrance must be in the kitchen..." She nods towards the only other door in the front room, which is to the left-hand side and closed. The door that had originally led to the back room where Tig had been held was nailed up tight.

They both move cautiously towards the door.

Freedom

The women and children had been put in the basement. It was pretty bare, as if it had been cleared out previously and anything that could have been used to help then escape had been removed. There were only a couple of rickety chairs, a grimy sofa and some blankets that had been left by their captors. There was, thank God, some electric power to the room and therefore there was a strip-light giving them some illumination.

Gemma, Tara, Lyla and the children had been joined by two other young women. Both of them were regular's at the club, and Gemma had recognised Trudy as the woman who was always hanging around Happy.

Trudy had given them a garbled story about how Clay and the others had been taken, but had no idea where they had been taken to. As soon as the men had been taken in the van, she had been picked up by the Mexican in the sedan, who had brought her to stay with the other women and children.

Gemma was pacing up and down with Thomas, who was still crying. She was trying her best to keep him quiet, but the poor baby was hungry. The men had never given it a thought that by taking Jax's youngest child that they would need to provide bottles of milk; and she hadn't been given a chance to pick up anything when she had been forced to leave her house. All she had was the half-full bottle that had been in his carry-cot, and Thomas had finished that ages ago.

She had taken charge of everybody and told them to rest while they could. She realised that any attempt to escape had to be left till nearer the morning. There was no way they could try and escape in the woods in the dark.

The rest of the women were asleep or at least trying to sleep, and Kenny and Abel had been made as comfortable as they could. Tara was sitting on the floor with her hands around her knees, having given the last blanket to Kenny. She and Gemma had taken it in turns to try and get Thomas back to sleep, but he was still fretting from hunger.

Gemma stops pacing as they hear the door at the top of the basement stairs opening. Tara quickly stands up to join Gemma, as they both wait for the man to show himself. The Mexican called Pedro steps cautiously down the stairs, keeping an eye on the two women. In one hand he has a small can; in the other a handgun. He comes to a stop when he reaches the bottom of the stairs.

"I'm sorry, Mrs Morrow" he apologises, gingerly offering the can. "It's condensed milk. All I can find. I've already made a hole in the top..."

Tara carefully reaches forward for the can, and he hands it over as she turns towards the carry-cot where the empty feeding bottle was.

"Thank you, it's appreciated" advises Gemma.

Tara turns around as she fills the bottle, at the sound of Gemma's voice. She was surprised that Gemma's voice was soft and sounded genuine.

"What about Ellie?" asks Gemma, as the man starts to turn around to head back up the stairs.

The man pauses, but doesn't look back. "I'm really sorry..." he advises as he heads up the stairs.

"No!" wails Lyla, who had woken up at the noise and caught the end of the conversation.

Gemma or Tara didn't know what to say, but they both look up at the top of the stairs as they hear a sudden noise. It sounded like a hand hitting flesh, and they both watch in astonishment as Pedro tumbles back down the stairs. He finally collapses onto the floor in front of them and is still; his gun falling from his hand. Tara quickly reaches to grab it, as Gemma still had her hands full with her grandson.

As Tara straightens up and takes a step back, she pauses as she hears Gemma. "Tig!" she exclaims.

Tara looks back up to the top of the stairs, as she sees the figure at the top of the stairs.

"Watcha, Gem" advises Tig, as he slowly and cautiously makes his way down the stairs from the landing. Gemma notices the way he moves with his arms held tightly around his chest, as if he is in pain and was hurting.

There is an eruption of noise from behind her as Tara and the other children and women all begin to talk at once. "Quiet!" exclaims Gemma, as she quickly turns around. She notices Lyla is the nearest, and quickly hands her grandson over to her. She then turns back as Tig walks up to them, as the others quieten down.

Tara looks on, astonishment still on her face and the gun still in her hand. Gemma steps forward and hugs Tig for all she is worth.

"Ouch!" he exclaims, and she pulls back "Careful, Gemma. Gotta couple of busted ribs..."

Tara steps forward, a look of concern on her face. "Did you want me to take a look?"

Tig smiles at her. "Maybe later, Doc". He slowly reaches down to check if the Mexican is unconscious, but it is obvious the man's neck is broken and he is dead. He decides not to say anything as it would upset the women and kids.

"What about the bastards who snatched us?" asks Gemma.

"Taken care of ..." he begins to advise, when he notices that Tara has brought up the gun as she looks up at the top of the stairs. Tig turns around to see Jade standing there, as she is putting her own gun back into her holster. She is watching the group of women and kids with her normal cool and calm confidence.

"It's okay, she's with me" he explains to Tara "The men aren't going to cause us any more problems, Doc. You can lower the gun..."

"Oh?" asks Gemma. Tara in the meantime lowers the gun, an uncertain look on her face. Gemma looks up at the young woman at the top of the stairs, and then at Tig as if waiting for an explanation. He couldn't blame her; it had been a pretty tough day for everyone.

"Let's just get everyone out of her, Gem. We'll talk later..." he advises. He realised it would be a good idea to get them all moving, and it also meant he didn't have to give a long explanation to Clay's wife.

It takes a few minutes to wake everybody up and get them started up the stairs. Lyla has put Thomas back into the carry-cot and has given him the bottle with the condensed milk. For the moment he is quiet and content as he sucks on the bottle. Tara gives her gun to Gemma, and picks up the carry cot. Abel and Kenny are both woken up, and Lyla picks up Abel to take him up the stairs. The two women help the others as they head up the stairs, with Gemma in the lead.

Tig in the meantime picks up one of the blankets and puts it over the corpse of the Mexican.

By the time Gemma has got to the top of the stairs, the young woman has moved away from the entrance to the basement and patiently waits just outside. She has pulled out a couple more bottles of water from her rucksack and gives one to Gemma and then the other to Lyla, who is the second person to exit the basement and gives the first drink to Abel.

"Thank you" Gemma says, looking at the young woman with curiosity on her face. She wasn't sure why Tig hadn't said anything about who she was and why she was here.

However, the young woman ignores her as Kenny is the third person to reach the top of the stairs. He looks a little bewildered and tired. Lyla is just behind him, followed by the other two women and then finally Tig.

Jade notices the young boy, and Gemma is not sure why she seems to have a smile on her face. "Are you Kenny?" asks Jade.

Kenny looks at her with puzzlement. "Yes..." he responds, looking to Gemma in assurance.

"You okay?" asks Jade, concern in her eyes. "Ellie was worried about you..."

"Is my sister all right?" asks Kenny. Although no-one had said anything directly in front of him, he'd had a real bad feeling that something had happened to her.

"Ellie! Oh my god, is she okay?" asks Lyla at the same time.

Jade offers a smile between Lyla and Kenny. "She's fine. It's a long story..."

"Oh thank God!" exclaims Lyla.

It goes quiet behind everybody, as if no-one was sure what to do or say next.

"Okay, I think it's time we called in the cops" advises Gemma, beginning to take charge.

"They already know about what happened, Gem" exclaims Tig. "I think these guys were Mercs. And they took the SAMCRO women and kids to ensure that the men co-operated. According to Unser, they've all disappeared..."

"They were taken a few hours ago" interrupts Trudy. "Clay, Happy and the others. I was forced to watch them as they were picked up from outside the club."

"Any idea where they were taken, doll?" asks Tig.

"No, the Mexican picked me up after all the guys were taken and they left in three vans. He brought me straight here..." she confirms.

"I think we need to speak to Unser..." adds Gemma, looking at Tig. "You got a cell?"

She is surprised as Tig automatically looks towards the young woman. Jade silently pulls out a cell from her pocket, which she had taken off the first man she had laid out. She gingerly offers it out to Gemma, as she advises "If you ring 911 and ask for the Chief, he's advised the local switchboard to put the call straight through to him..."

Gemma takes the cell, and opens it up. But for a moment she pauses as she turns back to Tig, who has taken a moment to sit down on the only sofa in the room. "I think we need to get the police here to get everyone to safety. Then you and I are going to see if we can go find Clay and the others..."

"Gemma..." Tig begins to argue.

"I've had a hell of a day, Tig. Don't you dare argue with me! We are both going to high-tail it out of here as soon as the cops turn up, and start searching for my boys..." she advises, determination on her face.

Tig realises it is not a time to argue with her, and sits back on the sofa. The rest of the women and children all make themselves as comfortable as they can.

He watches as Gemma makes the call on the cell-phone. "Chief Unser, please. Put me straight through." She pauses for a few seconds, and paces up and down as she waits.

Nobody notices that Jade had watched the conversation between Tig and Gemma with a thoughtful look on her face. She silently walks out of the room towards the front of house; but nobody sees her as most of them are watching Gemma.

"Wayne?" Gemma stops pacing as she finally gets connected. "Yeah, it's me. We're all okay" she pauses. "No, really. Nobody's hurt and our captors have been taken care of. You need to get the cops to trace this call, so they can come get us..."

Tig notices the surprise and irate look across Gemma's face at Unser's response. "You do? Why the hell didn't you tell them previously!" she almost shouts.

Tig suddenly sits bolt upright on the sofa as a thought hits him. He has just noticed that Jade is no longer in the room, and he is pretty sure he knows where she has gone. He gingerly gets himself off the sofa as he watches Gemma continue to argue with the Chief.

"Mrs Hunter? Are you sure it was her?" asks Gemma. She starts pacing again, and Tig takes the opportunity to slowly start taking steps towards the front door. "You mean you sent her up here on her own? What were you thinking! What the hell makes you think she could handle things, Wayne!" she exclaims

Tig has almost reached the front door when they all hear the sound of an engine being turned over, quickly followed by tyres screeching on the dirt track outside the house.

Despite his bruised and aching body and ribs, Tig legged it. The van is already heading down the track where it disappears into the trees, and he pushes himself to run after it. He knew he didn't have a cat-in-hell's chance that he would catch the vehicle; but hoped that Jade would see him in the rear-view mirror and wait up for him. He finds himself waving his arms despite the fact that his ribs were protesting.

Gemma and Tara are both standing in the doorway watching Tig run after the van. Gemma has the cell phone held against her chest, and is ignoring Unser's voice as he is shouting. There is a muffled "What the hell's going on!"

Tig was starting to slow down, when the van suddenly pulls up just before the trees. He picks up the pace for the last few meters, as he approaches the van. The passenger door is opened for him. He can hear a faint voice from the house behind him.

"I'll kill you for this, Tig!" shouts Gemma, knowing she had no chance of catching up to them.

Tig waves his arm in acknowledgement but doesn't turn around, as he jumps into the cab. He barely has time to close the van door before Jade puts her foot on the gas and the vehicle accelerates pretty fast down the track.

"She's gonna be real pissed..." exclaims Tig, trying to catch his breath.

"Not my problem" exclaims Jade, a cold note to her voice. "She's safer staying with the others..."

Tig smiles as he suddenly realises what Jade was up to. He briefly looks toward the back of the van, where the Serbian was still fast asleep. He knew that this was their source of information, and with luck they would be able to find out where Clay and the others were being kept. He rubs his face as he realises that it was going to be a very long night.

"Appreciate you stopping for me, sweetheart". He notices the annoyed look she gives him, before going back to concentrating on driving the van along the pitch-black track. "Sorry, Jade..." adds Tig, as he realises it would be a good idea to put on his safety-belt. Jade appeared to be a good driver, but even he felt nervous at how fast she was driving.

She is quiet for a few moments, and then suddenly says with a tired note in her voice "I'm getting to be as crazy as you are, Mr Trager. I'm still not sure why I even stopped for you..."

"We make a great team" Tig advises "I have a feeling we were meant for each other..."

She doesn't respond, and Tig gets the intense feeling she is irate with him. Again. He couldn't help it; he just liked to see her react when she got annoyed with him.

He finds himself grinning as he leans back into the seat.


	3. Chapter 3  Wild Card

_The SAMCRO women and children are now safe. But Tig and Jade have a long way to go before they can rescue the husbands and fathers of the club (NB: Please note that the section "Coercion" is not for the squeamish)_

And Kozik Makes Three...

Tig finds himself suddenly waking up at the noise of the van changing gear, as it pulls up at the junction onto the main road. It takes a moment before he becomes conscious where he was, as he realises he must have dozed off for a few minutes. He rubs his face to keep himself awake, as he looks across to Jade without trying to be obvious about it.

Jade is concentrating on her driving as she pulls across the junction and makes a left-hand turn. However, she quickly looks across to him as if she knew Tig was watching her. He notices that whilst he was dozing she must have wiped off the camouflage make-up from her face. Tig looks away as her stare meets his for a moment, before she pulls her gaze away back towards the road.

Tig looks back to the front window, and notices it was pitch black as the moon was hidden by clouds, and there is no traffic. "Where you taking us, sweet..." Damn, he was really going to have to get used to not calling her that. "Jade?" he finishes.

"Away from Charming" she explains. "I don't think it would be a good idea to run into the ATF and police when they're making their way to the house."

Tig turns his head to check on the unconscious Serbian at the back of the van. "Yeah, might be bit hard to explain with him on board..." he agrees "You know, it could be that the ATF will find out the location of Clay and the others before we do. There are two of the bastards still back there..."

"I doubt it" she advises. Tig waits for her to explain. "They'll be out for a few hours yet. Plus Mercenaries tend not to co-operate with the authorities. My guess is that they won't divulge any information until they get some kind of deal through a lawyer."

"Which could take days to organise? Yeah, you're probably right..." agrees Tig. "I guess our "guest" is the quickest way to find my brothers location." For a moment he pauses, as he starts to feel apprehensive. He couldn't be sure that Clay or the others were even alive right now. He tries to shake the feeling. All he could do was take it one step at a time; and hope for the best.

Tig tries to get comfortable in the seat; but he winces in pain at the movement. "There's some water in my bag, plus some painkillers. Front right hand pocket..." she advises as she notices.

"Thanks, doll" says Tig, as he leans down to the bag she had put under the passenger seat. He pulls out the last water bottle she had and a bottle of pain-killers. He quickly throws back four tables into his dry throat, and takes long gulps of the water. It was enough to kill some of the pain from his ribs but he would still be able to keep himself awake.

"We need to find somewhere to hole up out-of-the-way" advises Jade "You know the area better than I do; any ideas?"

Tig thinks for a moment. "We could cut round the Interstate and head back to the garage. It should avoid any cops heading this way..."

"Chief Unser said something about the local police watching the Teller-Morrow garage with a couple of Uniforms..." she advises.

"Shit!" swears Tig under his breath. The last thing he needed right now was a run-in with the authorities at the club-house. The thought of the garage suddenly gives him an idea. "You got a cell I can borrow?" he asks.

Jade pulls out her cell-phone from her top pocket, and silently hands it over to Tig. Tig closes his eyes to recall the phone number he needs and begins to punch in the digits. He puts the phone to his ear, as he puts the empty water bottle on the van's dashboard with his other hand. It rings twice, and Tig finds himself hoping that it doesn't go to voicemail. Luckily, it is picked up on the fourth ring.

"Kozik?" he asks and pauses. He doesn't notice the look of surprise on Jade's face. "Yeah, it's me. Where are you?" Tig goes silent as he listens to Kozik's long response. "Good, I was hoping they didn't know you were out of town. You heard anything more from Clay or Jax?" He pauses. "I don't suppose he left a message advising where they were being taken?" another pause. "Was worth a shot ... Nah, the women and kids are all safe. They'll probably be taken to the Cop-Shop soon, so I need you to go back to the garage". He stops again for a response "They'll be a couple of Uni's watching the place, so be careful. You did? Good. Do you think you could get hold of a vehicle and pick up some stuff for me?" He waits for Kozik's response.

"Okay, write this down. I need a couple of the heavy duty batteries, some jump leads and a pair of the insulating gloves. Plus the med-kit and a clean shirt" he pauses again as he listens to Kozik. "Nah, nothing serious. Just load up whatever hardware you can scrounge up and then call me back on this number. Got that?" He stays quiet as he listens to Kozik again. "Clay called in the Nevada charter? Okay, how soon before they get here?" He stops for a moment. "Just ask them to wait at the club-house in case we need back-up."

He pauses again. "I've got this covered, man. Just call me back when you've finished. And make sure the Cops or ATF don't follow you" Tig grins at Kozik's response. "Just get on with it, Kozik. We're running out of time here..." Tig then closed the cell phone to cut off the call, before Kozik could complain any more. He puts the cell into his own top pocket for the moment, ready for his colleague's return call.

"You have an idea?" asks Jade.

"Yeah, I know a place we can hole up and take our time to ... have a chat with our guest. Just off the Interstate there's an old building that's closed up. Used to be a garage till it went out of business a few years ago..." advises Tig.

"I'm guessing your garage doesn't like competition?" asks Jade as she briefly looks sideways at him.

Tig gives her a sheepish grin in response. "You know that how?" he asks with curiosity. It was only the locals who knew that the club tended to run any other garage business out of town.

"I had to go all the way to Lodi to pick up a spare tyre for the pick-up" she explains. "I didn't think I'd be welcome at your garage; and it was the only garage listed in the local phone directory."

It goes uncomfortably quiet between them for a moment. Tig wasn't sure if he should be offering an apology or excuse for the club, but decides that it wasn't something he wanted to discuss with her.

"Just head towards the Interstate. There's a road just after the turning onto the main road; I'll tell you when we get there..." he advises with the voice he normally used when bossing the Prospects around.

"I'd appreciate if you didn't start giving me orders, Mr Trager" she complains.

Tig picks up on the irritated tone in her voice. He couldn't stop himself from responding. "Should be used to it from your Military days. Army, wasn't it? Did a tour in Iraq?"

She pauses at first. "You're guessing, Mr Trager. My past is my own business. I'll agree to help you out to find your missing club members; but don't expect me to automatically follow your lead..."

Tig finds himself smiling again. He found he liked to confront her; and he also had to admit to himself that he wanted to know more about her. "So why are you doing this, anyway?" he asks.

Jade looks at him again for a moment, before going back to driving. "I made a promise to Ellie to get her brother and father back to her."

"No other reason?" he asks. He was hoping that she would admit she liked him; even only if a little.

"Let's get something straight, Mr Trager. The more I find out about SAMCRO the more I don't like what I hear. I'm doing this because I don't like children being hurt, whoever their parents are. I also made a promise and I don't break my word..." she states.

Tig goes quiet for a moment. He was surprised that she was so direct and honest about how she felt about the club. He recalls what had happened the previous month, and he supposed he couldn't blame her for her attitude towards SAMCRO. He found that her outlook was actually quite refreshing and made a change from the women who normally hung around the club. Apart from Gemma and Tara; most of them were hangers-on and he only thought of them as sexual objects.

This woman was definitely something different; stimulating and a challenge. As well as beautiful and totally sexy. Not a time to be turned on, Tig Trager...

It stays quiet between them for the next ten minutes, until in the distance the pitch-black of the road ahead starts to show a glow of lights. Tig realises the Interstate is just a few miles ahead of them. It is only a few minutes before they come up to a bridge that crosses over the busy Highway. Jade slows up after crossing the bridge, whilst Tig tries to get his bearings.

"Turn right up here..." he advises, as he suddenly recognises an old and battered sign. She turns the van and the headlights show an isolated and abandoned building with a small car park in front. Jade pulls the van up the front where there is a locked garage door.

"I'll get the door" volunteers Tig, as he opens the passenger door and gets out of the van. He walks up to the large garage door that is now lit by the headlights, and notices it is only locked by a padlock. He pulls out the knife he had borrowed from Jade, and it takes several minutes as he tries to pick the lock.

He pauses as he hears a voice from the open window in the van. "You need a hand, Mr Trager? You want me to do that?" asks Jade.

Tig picks up the sardonic tone in her voice, and swears under his breath. "Don't push it, sweetheart..."

Luckily it is only a few more seconds before the he finally pops the padlock, and he pulls it off the handle on the door. He begins to pull up the door so the van can drive in, but finds the movement hurts his ribs. Jade drives the van in slowly, and pulls up before turning the engine off. She leaves the headlights on for illumination, as she gets out of the van. Tig closes the garage door behind them. He ignores the pain from his bruised ribs as he steps forward and takes a look around the garage.

Tig remembers that when they had run the company out of town, that the owner had left in a real hurry. The place had obviously been stripped of anything valuable, but the benches and the engine block were still in place. Plus a couple of stools. There were chains hanging from the ceiling from where there had once been a mechanical block to lift up any engines. On the wall there was still paperwork hanging on a hook, as well as a medical kit.

Jade joins him at the rear to the van. Tig takes a step forward and opens the back door, where the Serbian is still asleep. "We're gonna have to tie him up first..." he exclaims. For the first time that night he starts to feel exhausted. He takes a moment to sit down on the edge of the vehicle.

"I'll do that" volunteers Jade. She notices that the duct tape that had previously tied up Tig was still in the back of the van and leans forward to pick it up. She then pulls herself into the van. Tig finds himself leaning up against the side of the van as he takes a moment to rest. He watches as Jade turns the Serbian over onto his back, and efficiently starts to bind up his feet and hands.

The quiet between them is interrupted as the Cell in Tig's pocket suddenly vibrates. He quickly takes it out and answers as he recognises the number. "Kozik?" he pauses as he listens to his colleague for several minutes. "That was quick. You got everything?" He listens to Kozik's answer. "Good, head out towards the Interstate; there's an old garage just over the bridge on your right-hand side. You know where it is?" he pauses. "I'll see you in fifteen minutes..." he closes the cell phone cover as Jade gets herself out of van. He returns her cell phone, which she puts in her own top pocket.

She turns around and grabs hold of the Serbian's feet, as if ready to pull him out of the van. Tig finds himself putting his hand on her arm as if to stop her. He is surprised that she seems to recoil at his touch, and pulls away from him. "I'll get Kozik to hook the Serbian up to the chains when he gets here" explains Tig, not sure why she seems to be so nervous that he had touched her. "Leave him for now..."

She nods in acknowledgement and Tig finds he is even more puzzled as she seems to keep her gaze away from his. It was as if she was embarrassed by her reaction to him. She seems not to know what to do for a few seconds, but then finally turns around and silently heads back towards to front of the van. Tig takes a breather as he hears her open the front door, and then close it again. She returns with a med-kit in her hand, which she had pulled out from her rucksack.

"That for me?" he asks, breaking the uncomfortable silence between them.

"You still in pain? If you've hurt your ribs, then you should really be in hospital..." she advises as she heads towards a nearby workbench and puts down the med-kit.

"It's getting better, and I can't afford the time right now. There's too much to do. I'll survive..." states Tig, baffled that she seems concerned for him.

He can hear her sigh to herself as she heads towards the wall where the old garage med-kit is hanging. "It's hurting every time you stretch, isn't it? That's not a good sign. You could have some internal damage..." she responds. She pulls off the med kit from the wall and returns to place it next to the other one.

"Don't tell me you're concerned for me, darlin'?" he asks. He was surprised that she had noticed he was in pain. In fact she was right; it did hurt every time he over-exerted himself.

Jade pulls out one of the stools from under the bench. "I'd rather not have a corpse on my hands" she finally responds. "If you'd sit here, Mr Trager, I'll take a look at you..."

Tig moves to gingerly sits himself on the stool, and watches as she opens out both med-kits. "So don't tell me you're a Doctor, too?" he asks in curiosity.

"Advanced first-aid training" she states, as she starts to take out bandages from both med-kits "You'll need to take your jacket and shirt off..."

"Thought you'd never ask, Jade..." he exclaims. He begins to pull off his cut and unbutton his shirt.

She lifts her gaze to confront his. Although her face showed she was irate at him again, he could swear there was a slight smile on her lips. He got the distinct impression that she was uncertain as how to treat him. "Behave, Mr Trager..." she finally states.

As he pulls off his shirt so his naked from the waist up, he responds to her by offering another grin. "Why won't you call me Tig?" he asks.

"Sit up straight and put your arms loosely by your side..." she instructs, ignoring his question. She takes a step forward so she is standing right in front of him.

Tig finds himself sitting up straighter, but couldn't help grimacing at the movement. He puts his arms by his side, and watches as Jade puts her hands on his chest. Jade runs her hands over his rib-cage, and Tig notices her hands are gentle but professional. It is silent between them apart from Tig's hoarse breathing. He couldn't help himself; her touch was driving him crazy. It took an effort to hold himself still, but he somehow managed it.

"Breath in slowly, then out again..." she instructs, as her hands remain on the middle of his rib-cage. He slows his breathing as she moves around behind him, and starts to feel the rib-cage on his back. He can feel her fingers probe into his back, and winces. "Tell me when it hurts" she requests as her hands go down his back.

"There" he responds a rough note in his voice as she touches a sore point "Ouch, there too..." he exclaims as a stabbing pain hits him. He can feel her fingers stop at the apex of his back.

"You've got at least two busted ribs, Mr Trager..." she states as she pulls her hands away and moves back to stand in front of him again. "You're lucky none of your ribs is pressing against a major organ or you lungs..."

"What do you suggest, Nurse Jade?" Tig finds himself asking.

"You really need to go to hospital right now. They would be able to take better care of you..." she suggests again.

"Not gonna happen..." exclaims Tig.

"You just crazy or just plain stubborn?" she asks in exasperation.

"Both" he states. "Look, once this is all over I promise to get proper medical care. Couldn't you just bind me up in the meantime?" he asks.

"Guess I don't have a choice..." she agrees as she takes off her cap and puts it on the bench. She then starts to unroll some of the bandages on the bench.

It goes quiet between them as she starts to bind his ribcage; starting from his waist upwards. However, as she puts her arms around him to feed the bandage around his back, it brings her body closer to his. Despite the fact that his ribs are giving him a tough time and his bruised body is aching all over, he unconsciously finds himself becoming aroused. Tig squirms where he is sitting on the stool to try and cover up his embarrassment. He knew Jade wasn't the type of woman he could take advantage of without getting his face slapped. Actually, he realised he wouldn't put it past her to knock him straight onto his (sore) back.

As she pins the second bandage to the first and continues to wrap it around him, she appears to be oblivious to his reaction. She has just put a third bandage on and leans forward to pass it around his back and for a moment her hair brushes his chest. Her face is close to his and he stares down into her exotic and pretty green eyes. She stares back at him for a long moment and he begins to lean forward as if to kiss her. He pauses as he feels her body go tense.

"One little kiss?" he asks.

She responds by pulling hard on the bandage so that it tightens around his middle, before abruptly pulling away from him. "Shit!" exclaims Tig, as his ribs shout out in protest. "You did that deliberately!"

"Let's get something straight between us, Mr Trager..." she exclaims as she takes a step back and distaste showing on her face. "I am not going to kiss you. I am not going to sleep with you. And I am definitely and absolutely never going to marry you..."

Tig can't help showing the disappointment on his face, as he remembers what he had said to her the month before. He realises he had pushed her too far, and she was angry with him. "Sorry. I'll behave from now on, Mrs Hunter. Could you finish binding me up without trying to hurt me anymore?" he pleads.

She gives him a hard look as if in warning, before going back to winding the bandages around him. Tig winces a couple of time as he realises that she was not being particularly gentle with him any longer; and she was also trying her best to keep the distant between them. She finally pulls the bandages tightly and Tig finds that although he can breathe his ribs were bound up so his movement was limited; but the pain had begun to lessen.

It goes quiet between them again, as Jade turns back to put the left-over bandages away.

"Friends" Tig suddenly states. She turns back to him with a puzzled look on her face. "You didn't say we couldn't be friends, Jade..." he advises as he offers her an apologetic look.

"You ever give it a rest?" she asks. The exasperated look had now turned to indifference; as if she was tired of him taunting her. "You can put your shirt back on..." she adds.

"Couldn't give me a hand, sweetheart?" he asks as he picks up the shirt he had put on the bench. He realises it was bloody and dirty from the punishment he had taken earlier that night; and grimaces that he had to put the filthy shirt back on.

"Not your kind of hand, Mr Trager..." she responds sharply. She walks away with the med-kit as if to put it back in her rucksack in the van. "...and I am not your sweetheart..."

Tig is surprised that she finally starts showing a sense of humour. He slowly puts the shirt back on and begins to button it up. "If you're gonna insist on me calling you Jade; then you should start calling me Tig..." he adds.

He pauses in buttoning up his shirt as he hears her muttering to herself. She has her back to him and is checking on the Serbian. "Not gonna call you by a bloody pet's name..."

"Short for Tigger" explains Tig, and then he suddenly realises why she won't call him by his nickname. "You had a pet called Tig?"

She turns back around, as she realises she had said too much. It is Tig's turn to raise his eyebrow at her. They both pause as they can hear the sound of a vehicle approaching from outside the garage. Jade moves cautiously to the only window at the front of the garage, and wipes away some of the dirt. She watches as a pick-up truck from the Teller-Morrow garage approaches the abandoned car-par and pulls up at the front. There is the sound of a horn beeping.

"Gotta be Kozik" confirms Tig, as he finishes buttoning up his shirt and puts his jacket back on. "Never could be bloody quiet about anything..."

Jade silently moves to the garage door and pulls it up; as Tig gets off the stool and walks forward. A grinning Kozik waves at him before pulling the pick-up up behind the van. He turns off the engine and the headlights and then gets out of the cab. In the meantime, Jade takes a quick look around outside as if checking he wasn't being followed, before closing the garage door.

Kozik still has a grin on his face as he moves around the vehicle to stand before Tig. "Hey, man. Can't leave you alone for five minutes and you get into trouble..."

Tig smiles in return, for once glad to see the man who had once been his best friend. "And trust you to miss all the fun, Kozik..." he responds. He was actually glad to see him for once, and they hug. Tig can't help but grimace as Kozik also innocently slaps him on the back.

Kozik turns around at the sound of a footstep behind him. He is shocked when he realises that the woman that was with Tig is the same women who had tied him up like a hog for a barbeque three weeks ago. He hadn't seen her clearly when she had opened the garage doors, due to the glare of the headlights. "Shit! What the fuck she doing here?" he asks, turning back to Tig.

Jade has a wary look on her face, as if she is not sure how to respond. She had been expecting Kozik to be unhappy as soon as Tig had made plans for them to meet up. She decides to leave the two of them to catch up, and quickly heads towards the front of the van.

Tig's smile turns to annoyance at Kozik's response to recognising Jade. "Shut it, Kozik..." he asks.

"But she..." Kozik begins to argue.

They can both hear the front door of the van being opened and then slammed shut, as Jade gets back into the vehicle. It was almost as if she was trying to stay out of their way.

"She's with me, and that's all you need to know..." exclaims Tig. It was too long a story to explain to Kozik. Nor did he want to admit that Jade had probably saved his life earlier that night.

"I'm not fucking happy she's here..." argues Kozik.

"Shit, man! Why do you always have to be so bloody awkward? You have to trust me on this" Tig states, as he steps forward so his face is only inches away from Kozik's. He glares at Kozik, who glowers back at him.

"Trust you? That goes both ways. I don't trust you or her. Tiggy..." Kozik angrily states. He decides he wasn't going to back down on this one.

Tig's eyes are slitted at Kozik's taunt. He knew that their history meant that he had not shown any trust or real friendship towards Kozik, despite the events before he went to prison. Tig had made it pointedly obvious that he would never agree to Kozik being patched in. It also dawns on him that now was not the time for them to settle their differences. "Right now, I don't give a fuck what you think. You want to settle things up between us, fine. But only once we get Clay and the others back..."

Kozik remains silent for a moment, but Tig knew him well enough to see that Kozik was thinking through what he had said. Tig continues to glare at him, and finally Kozik takes a step back. "You and me. Once this is over..." agrees Kozik as he looks back towards the van. "But I still don't trust her..."

"You don't have to trust her. Just accept she's here to help..." confirms Tig, as he moves his stare away from Kozik to break the tension between them. "...and also bear in mind she saved Ellie and all of the wives and kids tonight..."

"What!" exclaims Kozik. Tig grins as he sees the shocked expression on his fellow Son's face.

"Long story; and we don't have the time..." begins Tig, but he is startled as they both hear Jade from where she is leaning against the side of the van. Neither of them had heard her open the van door and move to observe them.

"Sorry to disturb your little chat, gentlemen. But the Serbian's beginning to come round..." she exclaims.

In The 'Can' Again...

It didn't look good for the SAMCRO brothers. After being shackled to the vans, they had been driven for about an hour in the dark. Nobody had a clue where they were going, as the windows had been covered.

Eventually all three vans had pulled up, and the doors had been opened. The vans had pulled into a large under-cover area that could have been a warehouse. However, there were large pipes around the main open area; so the place could have been anywhere. One group at a time had been taken out of the van, with the guards watching them as they were escorted through large doors and down a serious of steps until they reached another open and empty area. In the middle of the area was a large cage with bars, which looked like it had been purpose-built for their imprisonment.

Their shackles had been removed before they were all put into the cage. The lighting for the open-area had been left on, and the guards had closed the doors. There was a solid lock on the cage, and Jax had also heard the outside doors being locked after their guards had left.

The only item in the cage was a bucket for a toilet, and nowhere to sit. The room was dank and dark, and the floor was clean but also damp. Jax had tried to see if he could open the lock, but it was too complex. It was difficult to reach it through the bars, and eventually he had taken a rest whilst Happy had attempted to unlock it using the pin buckle from his belt. However, so far he hadn't had much luck.

Clay had been disappointed that his cigars had been taken off him. They'd all been searched again upon arrival and anything useful had been removed. Piney and Bobby had eventually sat down on the floor, despite it being damp. The younger ones, including Jax, had remained standing.

It was Happy who broke the quiet that had crept upon them eventually. "I'd sure like to know who's behind all this..." he states.

Clay was surprised that Happy had made any comment. He was usually the last to say anything.

"Must have been big money to hire all these Mercs..." adds Opie.

"Who we pissed off with that sort of dough?" asks Juice.

"You kidding?" advises Jax in annoyance. "I could probably write a list as long as your arm..."

"Drugs money, maybe?" suggest Piney. It was the only comment he had made all night.

"Why waste that kinda money on us?" adds Bobby. "Would've been easier and cheaper to just take us out..."

"I think someone's making it real personnel" states Chibbs. "Why else use the lassies and kids against us?"

"God, I hope they let them go..." Juice says. He notices the look on Clay's face, and realised it was a thought that he should not have been spoken out loud.

Clay beings to pace up and down the length of the cage like a trapped animal; as the thought of Gemma and the others being hurt starts to finally get to him. He was not used to feeling so frustrated and useless. "I'm gonna fucking kill all of those bastards..." he mumbles to himself.

Jax leans against the cell bars and sighs. He was just as aggravated as Clay, and even his patience was wearing thin. He felt as trapped now as he had when he had been in prison. At least when he was in Stockton, he knew eventually he would be freed. This time he was not so sure he was going to get out of this one. "Knew the club would get me killed one of these days..."

Coercion

The Serbian finally wakes up as cold water hits his face and body. He finds himself hooked up to chains in a building that looked like a garage. Kozik had tied him up so that the man was off his feet and hanging from the ceiling. His shirt had been ripped from him and his mouth had been taped up.

Under Tig's instructions, Kozik had found an old bucket and a tap that worked in the bathroom and had thrown water over the Eastern European man so that he was soaked to the skin. Tig had in the meantime changed his shirt, and had set up the batteries and cable so that they were ready. He had just finished and picks up the insulating gloves.

Kozik had already guessed what Tig had in store for the poor bastard hanging from the chains. He kept looking at the woman as if expecting her to object, but her face had remained carefully neutral as she had watched Tig and Kozik work together. She now sat on one of the garage stools.

"You want me to do this?" offers Kozik.

"Nah, I owe the bastard for beating the shit out of me..." responds Tig. He pauses as he suddenly thinks of something, and turns towards Jade. "I'd like you to go wait outside while we do this, Mrs Hunter" he asks. Kozik looks surprised to hear the way his colleague had politely asked her.

She looks from Tig to Kozik with the same neutral look on her face, but shakes her head.

Tig sighs as he realises that Jade was going to be stubborn. "This is not going to be pretty..." he tries to explain.

Jade looks up at the Serbian who is hanging from the ceiling. She notices that the man is carefully watching everything going on, but so far doesn't show any fear. She looks back to Tig. "Don't let my presence stand in your way, Mr Trager..." she advises.

Tig looks at her in surprise, and he and Kozik exchange a glance. Tig starts to pull on the gloves as he steps forward to where the jump-leads are hooked up to the heavy-duty batteries.

"I'd like my knife back, though..." she suddenly states. Tig offers a bewildered look for a moment and then realised he still had the knife he had borrowed from her in his own knife-sheaf. He pulls the knife out, flips it over and hands it to her hilt-first. She takes it and puts it down onto the garage bench.

"You sure?" Tig asks.

She knew he was not talking about handing the knife over. "I'm fine right here..."

Tig shakes his head before putting on the gloves. Kozik looks on with a mystified look on his face; he got the distinct impression that this woman was trying to prove something to Tig. Or maybe Tig was trying to prove something to her.

"Kozik, the gag?" asks Tig. Kozik reaches up and pulls off the duct-tape.

Tig looks up at the Serbian with the end of the cable in his hands. "All we want to know is where the men are. You going to co-operate?"

The Serbian looks down at Tig before spitting at him, which barely misses him. "Tvo J Majka Je Jdean Kurva" he states in Serbian. Tig knew it wasn't polite from the tone of voice.

"He's saying your mother was a whore" Jade translates.

It is Kozik who turns towards Jade first. "You speak Serbian?" he asks in surprise. He misses his colleagues smile. Tig knew that the woman he liked was multi-talented; and he shouldn't be surprised she could speak or understand another language.

Jade looks at Kozik with a steadfast look on her face, and it takes him by surprise. "Not enough to speak it well; enough to understand the gist..." she confirms.

"And you are a fucking whore-bitch, and I will enjoy humping you until you bleed to death!" exclaims the Serbian in English, as he glares at the woman who had sucker-punched him earlier that night.

He suddenly screams and writhes in agony as Tig abruptly thrusts the end of the jumper leads against the man's bare body. There is the flash of the light from the current, and the smell of burning. The Serbian manages to jerk his body away for a moment and Tig takes a step back as the Serbians' body rocks from side to side. There is a red burn mark left on the man's body.

"Be nice..." exclaims Tig with an angry and tough note to his voice. He doesn't turn around as his voice changes to a beseeching tone. "I'm asking, Jade. Please go for a walk or something..."

Kozik suddenly realises he was talking to the woman as if he was concerned for her. How the hell had Tig found out her first name? He happens to look at Jade as she responds, and notices the harsh look on her face. She had not been intimidated or upset at the Serbian's threat.

"No" she responds with determination in her voice.

"Shit!" exclaims Tig under his breath.

It goes quiet for a moment, and Tig reaches forward to electrocute the Serbian. The man screams in pain again, and his body rocks even more violently. "Kozik, keep him still!" asks Tig. Kozik picks up a cloth that was sitting on top of one of the benches, and steps forward to help Tig. He holds onto the Serbian to keep his body still, using the cloth as insulation.

"You ready to talk yet?" asks Kozik of the Serbian.

All three of them are surprised as the man takes a deep breath, and then laughs unexpectedly. "My grandmother could teach you better ways to torture! You are children..."

Tig nods towards Kozik who quickly lets the Serbian go, then hits him again with the jump-leads. This time the Serbian manages to bite down his scream, although his body still jerks away.

It goes on like that for another five minutes, before Tig calls a halt as his ribs start to hurt again and he had broken out into a sweat. The Serbian had sworn and screamed a few times, but had not said anything else in between bouts of the torture.

"Tough son-of-a-bitch" states Kozik, as he also takes a breather.

Jade suddenly picks up the knife from the bench, and with this in her hand she gets off the stool and steps up towards where the Serbian is hanging from the chains. She looks up at him with a dangerous look on her face; as Tig looks on in puzzlement. The knife was held loosely in her hand, but there was something in the way she held it that was threatening.

"You would have hurt and killed Ellie..." she states.

"Fuck you!" responds the Serbian.

Jade takes a step forward as she ignores the comment, and Kozik holds onto the Serbian's legs so that he can't kick out at her. "I really don't like men who like to harm children" she adds. "In some cultures, they deal with paedophiles with extreme measures."

Tig and Kozik exchange a perplexed look.

"But I think the Yakuza have the right idea..." she continues. Her voice is cold and calm, and Kozik suddenly has a chill down his back at the tone. "They make a severe example of men who like to sexually abuse children, not matter what their former status. Family is very important to them."

She pauses, and it goes quiet for a few seconds. The Serbian looks down at the woman with a look of expectation. Kozik can feel him flinch as Jade slowly brings up the knife and presses it against the man's trousers and runs it calmly down the length of his inside leg. The knife was sharp enough to cut through to his flesh, but she only left a fine indent down the material of his trousers.

"First, they emasculate them" she advises. Her knife is used to pull off the Serbian's left shoe and it drops to the floor.

"Jesus!" Kozik can't help exclaiming. He looks at Tig, and notices the grin that is on his face.

"They cut off everything" she adds "So the man can't ever get aroused and he has to squat to pee..."

"You do not scare me, bitch!" exclaims the Serbian. But both Tig and Kozik pick up on the doubt in his voice.

Jade calmly pulls off the other shoe with her knife as she continues. "The Yakuza do not think that this is enough to make an example. An eye is taken in respect of the children he has hurt. They then take off both hands from the wrist. To make sure that he can never touch a kid again..."

"Shit!" Tig finds himself exclaiming as his grin disappears.

"And then the bastard's executed, right?" Kozik finds himself asking.

She looks at Kozik with steel in her eyes. He finds himself looking away.

"No. The man is left alive. He is cared for so that he lives a long live; he is carefully watched so he cannot commit suicide. Usually the ones who have to care of him are doing so as punishment for a lesser crime. The man is tattooed on his face so that all who see him know what he is. The Yakuza believe that death is too easy a punishment. He is used as a living example to others..." she explains.

It goes uncomfortably quiet, as Jade takes a step back and looks up at the Serbian. The Mercenary finds he can't look into those chilling green eyes, and looks towards Tig as he nervously licks his lips.

"Jesus, Jade..." begins Tig. He pauses when he realised he didn't know what else to say.

"Mr Kozik, would you mind removing his trousers and underwear?" she suddenly asks.

Kozik turns pale and looks nauseous. Tig notices and even he felt butterflies in his stomach; he didn't even want to think about the way his groin had tightened as Jade had coldly and calmly told her story. "I'll do it..." volunteers Tig, but he could not hide the apprehensive tone to his voice.

Kozik releases the Serbians' legs, and takes a step back. "Jesus, I think I'm gonna be sick..." he whispers.

Jade turns towards him with the same hard look on her face; that is reflected in her eyes. "I understand, Mr Kozik. I suggest you go for a walk..." she confirms. She then turns back to Tig. "Once you've stripped him, I think it best you also get some air, Mr Trager. You're looking a little pale..."

Tig tries not to show his surprise as he notices the wink she gives him. Only he had seen it, as she had been turned away from both the Serbian and Kozik. He really wasn't certain if this whole thing was some kind of performance or not. He suddenly wasn't so sure about this woman. He thought he was in love with her; but if she wasn't putting on an act then even this was beyond him. The situation was even making him feel a little queasy.

"You're fucking crazier than Tig!" Kozik suddenly states. He turns around before Jade can give him another hard look, and walks away. He disappears into the bathroom that was located at the rear of the garage building; slamming the door behind him.

Tig notices the Serbian's face begins to look panicky.

"If you'd be so kind, Mr Trager?" asks Jade.

Tig takes off the insulating gloves on his hands and drops them on the nearby bench. He silently walks around the Serbian so he is behind him, and yanks down the man's trousers and boxer shorts and leaves the man buck-naked from his socks upwards. Tig takes a step back from the man, as the Serbian begins to violently struggle.

"I'll stay" Tig volunteers.

"No, Mr Trager. This would be best if there are no witnesses. Please leave..." she looks up at the Serbian. "As for you, if you struggle you will most probably bleed to death before I finish. I suggest you stay very still..."

She brings up the knife, and Tig finds himself turning around as if not wanting to watch. He heads towards the closed garage door at the front, and begins to pull up the door.

"No!" exclaims the Serbian from behind him with sudden terror in his voice. "Do not leave me alone with this fucking crazy woman!"

"Sorry, pal" apologises Tig as he pulls open the door. "All you had to do was give us the location of where my friends are..."

"Bogorodica!" shouts the Serbian in desperation. "I will tell!"

Tig warily turns around, not sure what to expect. However, Jade is just standing there with the raised knife in her hand as she stands before the naked Serbian. "Spill it" exclaims Tig as he walks back to stand next to Jade.

The man looks down with a frightened look on his face. "I want your promise that you will not let this woman touch me..."

"Done" agrees Tig. The Serbian looks nervously between her and Tig.

"You will not kill me?" he pleads

Tig turns his head to look at Jade. She gives him a rigid look. "You tell us everything you know, and then you have my word as a member of SAMCRO. We will not hurt or kill you..." states Tig, as he tries to ignore the look in Jade's eyes.

"No amount of money is worth this!" exclaims the Serbian. "The man hired twelve of us..."

"Who?" asks Tig as he turns back to their prisoner.

"I do not know! I never met him and he did not give his name. It was all arranged through phone calls. The black man was paid to act as our leader..." responds the Mercenary.

"Where are they?" Tig asks the most important question.

"We had to help set up the two places ready for everyone. I was told to stay at the house with the women and children..." exclaims the Serbian. "... The other place was a ... Voda Biljka?"

"A what!" asks Tig in annoyance.

"I do not know the words in English..." The Serbian's voice is panic-stricken.

"Water? Flower?" translates Jade.

"Yes! Where water is ... taken? There was a sign. C-L-W-C?" he states.

"Charming and Lodi Water Corporation" advises Jade to Tig. She calmly puts the knife in her hand back into the sheaf at her side.

"The exact location, you stupid prick!" Tig shouts at the Serbian.

"Outside of a place called Lodi! It has been ... left?" The man replies, as if his terror had resulted in him having difficulties with his English.

"Abandoned Water Plant?" suggests Jade.

"Yes, it is empty! Like a warehouse!" confirms the man.

Tig grins as he turns towards Jade. "I know the place; we've used it a couple of times before. There is an old abandoned water plant just this side of Lodi". He turns back to the Serbian. "You'd better not be pulling a fast one on us, pal. Or I'll get the young lady here; to come back for you..."

"It is the place where the men were to be taken!" states the Serbian.

Tig smiles as he realises that it was the first time that night that he was starting to get somewhere. He turns to Jade, whose cold face has now changed to a neutral look. "You mind getting the keys from the van? We'll take the pick-up..."

She nods as she heads towards the van. She quickly climbs in and turns off the lights. There is enough light from the open garage door for her to see; as the moon had come out from behind the clouds. She grabs her rucksack and the van keys and then gets out to patiently wait by the side of the pick-up.

Tig in the meantime walks up to the bathroom door and pounds on the door. "Kozik, we've got the location! Get your arse out of there!"

The door is abruptly opened and Kozik glares at Tig. His hair and face were wet, and Tig realises that he had used the water in the bathroom to wash his face and calm himself down. It also dawns on him that Kozik was irate with himself for walking away from the situation with the Serbian.

"What did she do?" he asks apprehensively.

Tig grins at him. "Nothing. The Serbian prick told us everything. The guys are being held at an old abandoned water plant just outside of Lodi..."

Kozik nervously looks at the Serbian hanging from the ceiling. All he notices is that the guy was now stark naked but intact, and he could not see any blood on the floor. "Fuck it, Tiggy. You don't half pick 'em..." he swears quietly, as he finds he can't meet Tig's stare.

Tig knew he wasn't talking about the Serbian or the situation they were in. His grin gets wider as he turns around and heads back towards the van and pick-up. Kozik quickly follows, as he heads towards the pick-up and lets himself into the driver's seat at the front.

Tig stops by the passenger door, as Jade is leaning up against the side of the pickup, with her cap back on her head. She had already put her rucksack in the back, amongst several boxes of guns and ammo that Kozik had collected from the clubhouse. Tig opens the door, and nods towards Jade as if she should get in first.

"I'm not having her sit next to me!" exclaims Kozik from the driver's seat.

Tig notices the look on Jade's face; and it suddenly dawns on him that she wasn't exactly happy about having to sit between the two men at the front of the pick-up. He sighs as he starts to pull himself up into the pick-up first.

"Wait! You promised to let me go!" exclaims an angry Serbian from behind them.

Tig turns around as he still holds onto the pick-up's door for support. "I said we – that's me, Jade or Kozik wouldn't hurt or kill you. That doesn't mean we release you..."

"You cannot leave me here like this!" shouts the Serbian as he struggles again in his bonds.

"Doesn't mean I won't send one of the guys from the club back for you. Ellie's father will probably want to have a word with you. I'll send him round in a day or so..." advises Tig. He starts to pull himself up into the pick-up, but pauses as he hears the Serbian swearing in his own language. The movement of pulling himself up had caused Tig's ribs to protest and pain hits him for a moment. He finds he doesn't have the energy to pull himself the last foot up into the pick-up

He feels a couple of warm hands placed on his backside, and Jade boosts him up into the pick-up.

"Thanks, doll" he says as he turns himself around and sits in the middle of the front and the only seat in the vehicle. Jade quickly gets herself up into the vehicle, and it is a bit of a crush with the three of them on the front seat. She closes the pick-up passenger door, before squeezing herself right up to the door as if trying to keep her distance from Tig.

Kozik turns over the pick-up's engine, and starts to reverse the vehicle out of the garage. "It'll take about thirty minutes to get there this time of night" he states. "You want the Nevada Charter in on this?"

"Nah, I think the three of us can take on the eight-remaining men at the Water Plant. We'll have surprise on our side..." advises Tig.

Kozik stops the vehicle as it pulls outside of the garage. He leaves the engine running as he quickly gets out to close the garage door. It is quiet between Tig and Jade for a few seconds as they wait for Kozik.

"You wouldn't have really done that, would you?" Tig suddenly finds himself asking. "To the Serbian?"

Jade is staring out of the window, so Tig is unable to see her face. "You were the one to start torturing him..."

"Yeah, but that was different..." he starts to argue.

"Because I threatened to cut his balls off?" she asks with a sharp retort to her voice.

Before he can respond, Kozik gets back into the vehicle. Tig realises that it was best not to continue this particular conversation.

It is quiet between them for the next ten minutes, as Kozik starts to head towards Lodi. Tig finds he can't get comfortable with the tight bandages around his middle, and finds himself squirming on the seat. He notices that every time his body shifts towards where Jade is sitting that she seems to flinch away from him. He couldn't see the look on her face, despite the back-glare from the headlights, as she was still staring out of the window.

"Stop the vehicle!" Jade suddenly asks, as she puts her hand to her mouth.

Kozik ignores her, not sure why she wanted to stop.

"Fucking pull up!" exclaims Jade.

"Kozik!" adds Tig in surprise that she had sworn.

Kozik immediately pulls up to the edge of the road. Before either he or Tig can say anything, Jade has opened the passenger door and has jumped out.

Tig gingerly pulls himself towards the passenger door, feeling baffled as to the reason why Jade had wanted to suddenly stop. He pauses as he hears the sound of retching from the side of the road. He peers out to see that she was bent over and being sick on the verge of the road. Tig turns towards Kozik, and they swap an astonished look. It suddenly dawns on both men that she was suffering a delayed reaction from the act she had put on earlier to get the Serbian to talk.

"Stay put. I'll deal with it" advises Kozik. He gets out of the vehicle, as Tig pulls himself forward so he is sitting on the edge of the seat and watches Jade in concern.

Kozik walks to the rear of the pick-up, where he pulls out a bottle of water from the supplies he had put in the back. Jade wipes her mouth as she straightens up, and takes a wary step back from Kozik. He offers her the bottle of water. She gives him a hard look, but Kozik offers a genuine smile to her in response.

"So you're human, after all?" he asks. "Maybe Tig wasn't that wrong about you..." He pulls off the top to the water bottle and offers the bottle back to her again.

The hard look changes to surprise and gratitude, as she gingerly takes the water bottle from him. He turns around and heads back to the driver's side of the pick-up; as if he knew she needed a couple of minutes to herself. Tig watches as Jade takes a mouthful of water, and then spits it out. She then takes a few more mouthfuls and seems to be taking long breaths of fresh air.

Tig hears rather than sees Kozik get back into the driver's side of the vehicle. "Not such a tough bitch after all, is she? That was some performance back there; she had both of us fooled. You know, I think I'm beginning to like her..." states Kozik with a grin on his face.

"Hands off. She's mine..." advises Tig, without even turning around.

"Not so sure about that. I got the impression she doesn't like you too much..." exclaims Kozik. It wasn't the first time they had argued or fought over a woman.

Tig then turns around and gives Kozik a hard look. "That's the woman I'm eventually going to marry, Kozik. We're just getting to know each other first, that's all..."

Separation

Clay is still pacing up and down when the door to their locked area is abruptly opened. The others all get up to stand at the bars to watch as three of the Mercenaries walk in; guns at the ready for any trouble. The leading man is the black South-African, who has the key to the lock in his hands.

"All of you stand away from the door" he orders.

None of the men move, and the South African starts to look annoyed.

"We're getting tired of being ordered around..." exclaims Jax as he leans up against the bars at the front of the cage. "Until we know our wives and kids are safe, then don't expect us to co-operate."

The South African suddenly lifts the gun in his hand and shoots several rounds in front of the cage. Juice and Bobby take a nervous step back, but Jax and Clay stubbornly stay where they are.

"You wanna really put your families' lives at risk, Teller?" he asks. Jax just glares at him. Opie moves up to stand immediately behind him, as if in silent support.

The South African seems to think for a moment, and then a large grin crosses his face. He abruptly fires again and accurately shoots Jax in the arm.

"Shit" exclaims Juice.

Jax finds himself putting his left hand to where he had been shot in the right arm, as blood begins to trickle through his fingers. Clay gives him a concerned look.

"Flesh wound" exclaims Jax as he looks down and checks on the wound.

Happy barges through the others from where he had stood at the back, as he pulls off his bandana. He twirls it around as he silently wraps it around Jax's arm to stop the bleeding.

"I have instructions not to kill you yet" advises the black man. "That doesn't mean I won't start shooting to wound. Starting with the kneecaps of the old men first..."

Jax and Clay swap a look, as if in silent agreement. "What the fuck do you want?" Clay grudgingly asks.

"You and Teller out of the cage. We have a visitor to see you..."

The South African steps forward with the other two men by his side. Clay offers Bobby a silent glance as if he was telling him that Bobby was now in charge. Bobby pulls the others away from the door as he and Jax step forward. Opie is hesitant in stepping back, and stubbornly stays by the bars. One of the mercenaries notices and warily keeps his gun aimed directly at him.

But it wasn't as if they had any choice but to co-operate for the moment...

Old Adversary

Tig had remembered that there was a back-road that led around the back of the Water Plant, and had directed Kozik to follow it. As Kozik pulls up to the side of the road behind an old abandoned bus shelter, they can see that the Plant is definitely occupied as there is lighting and movement in the distance. Several vans and one car are parked at the front of the Water Plant.

Kozik turns off the engine and lights, and they all get out of the pick-up. Jade grabs her rucksack first, and then Tig and Kozik go through the boxes at the back. It is silent between them as the men arm themselves. Kozik pulls out a modified hunting rifle, which he puts across his back using a sling. Jade takes something out of the rucksack before putting it on her back. She then turns to look over the area between the back-road and the Plant, which is downhill. The area is riddled with bushes and rocks and it is not well-lit despite the moonlight.

She points out an area just ahead of them. "I think I can see a path down there..."

"Gonna be tough in the dark..." exclaims Kozik, as he stands beside Tig.

"Should be dawn in about an hour..." adds Tig. "We need to get down there before it gets too light..."

Kozik takes a careful look and doesn't look happy that they will have to make their way down in almost total darkness. Jade brings up the item in her hand, which appear to be a bulky pair of binoculars. "NVB" she states, in response to Kozik's puzzled look.

"What's that?" asks Kozik.

"Night Vision Binoculars" exclaims Tig, before Jade can respond. She looks at him with a look of surprise on her face. "You're not the only one with a military background, honey..." he adds.

She looks genuinely astonished, and he grins at her. He had never really talked to anyone at the club about his time in the military; but maybe this was an opportunity for him to swap some history with her. There was also the thought that they might finally have something in common...

"Army?" she asks.

"Now you're guessing, Jade..." he exclaims. "Shall I lead the way?" he asks. She hands over the binoculars without any further comment, and he is surprised to see a strange look cross her face. As if she wasn't expecting him to share some of his past with her.

Tig ignores her as he quickly looks through the binoculars and adjusts the vision. He notices there does seem to be a steep but passable path leading down towards the fenced-off area to the rear of the plant. He starts to lead the way, with Kozik following and Jade bringing up the rear.

It is quiet between them for the next minutes, as Tig occasionally pauses to look through the binoculars to look ahead and plot their route. As they get closer he leads them to a large rock overhang that looks over the Plant. He leads them to one side, and then pauses and starts to bend down although his ribs are hurting. Both Kozik and Jade also bend down, so they are not seen by the lookouts on the roof of the main building.

Tig lies himself face-down on the ground, and pulls himself forward until he is leaning over the rock overhang. He uses the Night Vision Binoculars to take a good look at Plant. He hears a rustling sound behind him, and Jade crawls up to lie beside him. He notices in her hand she has her cell, which she is pointing at the Plant's direction. Kozik decides to stay behind them and out of the way.

Tig notices that Jade is look intensely at the Cell. "Not the time to make a call, sweetheart..." he advises.

He was expecting her to give him an annoyed look, but instead she gingerly smiles at him. He is taken by surprise, and it is a moment before he realises she is showing him the front of her cell. He takes a look and is amazed to see that the camera on her cell is showing a picture of the area in front of the Plant in the green of Night Vision. It was poor quality compared to his recent view through the Binoculars, but clearly showed the lit-up building and the men on the roof.

"Didn't know Cell's could do that..." he exclaims.

"Friend of mine lent it to me; it's a proto-type" she confirms. She takes another picture and clicks a button. She then takes a look before showing the picture to Tig. This time the picture shows the area in a clearer and colourful Thermal Image. There are plainly three men standing on the roof. There are also fainter warm thermal area's that look like several men on the ground floor inside the building.

"Neat. Gotta get one of those for Juice for Christmas..." he smiles at her.

"What!" exclaims Kozik as he crawls up the other side of Jade. He had been annoyed that he was being left out of something, and had decided it was worth moving forward to find out what was going on. Jade turns to silently show him the pictures as Tig goes back to checking the men on the roof.

"Shouldn't the guys show up on that if they're down there? In a – what do you call it – a group of heat-signatures?" asks Kozik.

"If they're underground; then the Thermal imaging might not pick them up..." explains Jade. She uses the camera to take more pictures, but there is no change in the number of men showing.

"They're held in a basement area, then" suggests Tig. "Same as at the house..."

"It would make sense. Harder to escape from..." muses Jade.

"Hang on..." exclaims Tig as he watches the lookouts on the roof. "Looks like one of them's moving off the roof." He continues to watch as one of the men moves down a ladder along the side of the building.

"This could be our chance to get down there" suggests Jade. "But we'll still need to take the lookouts out together before we can get closer to the building."

"I'll take care of that" advises Kozik. He pulls off the Hunting Rifle that he had on a sling across his back.

"You've always been a lousy shot, Kozik..." disagrees Tig.

"I can take them both down if you lend me your Binoculars to spot them first..." confirms Kozik.

Tig looks across to Kozik in annoyance, ignoring Jade who is lying in between them. "I'll take the shot; you'll flunk it..."

"Don't you trust me, Tiggy?" Kozik begins to argue.

"We can't afford to miss, or we'll lose our surprise..." responds Tig. "Once the lookouts are taken out, we'll need to move quickly..."

"I've been practicing at weekends when you were all in prison, Tig" Kozik's voice is annoyed. "Didn't have much else to do..."

"And you think I'm gonna take your word for it that you're a better shot?" asks Tig.

"Now wait a fucking..." begins Kozik.

"You two gentlemen want to go find a room?" interrupts Jade with a sarcastic tone. "I could drop you off somewhere and come back and deal with this on my own. It sure would be a hell of a lot quicker and quieter..."

They both look towards where she is lying in between them. Kozik finds himself smiling, whilst Tig actually looks annoyed for once. She ignores them both as she peers down at the Plant below them. "They've got company down there..." she advises.

Kozik and Tig both turn back to look at the Water Plant. Even without the Binoculars, they can see that the gated fence at the front is being opened by the man who had come down from the roof. A large and expensive sedan is driving up the road, and the gate is opened and then closed as it pulls up to the front of the building.

Tig looks through the binoculars again. It is quiet for a few moments, as he watches the back passenger door being opened and a man gets out. Tig zooms in the binoculars to take a closer look to see who it is.

Both Kozik and Jade are surprised as Tig swears. "Fucking prick. Should've known he was behind all of this..." Before Kozik can say anything in response, Tig abruptly passes the binoculars to Kozik. "Tell me I'm wrong about who that is..." he asks. There is a cold and angry look on his face.

Kozik hurriedly puts the binoculars to his eyes as Jade looks on in bewilderment. Kozik has to take a second look before he realises who Tig was talking about. He watches as the man who had come down from the roof leads the other silver-haired man into the building. "Ethan Zobelle" confirms Kozik, as he hands the binoculars back to Tig.

Jade looks between the two men on either side of her, and notices the look of abhorrence on their faces. It goes quiet between them as both men think through the implications. "Who's Ethan Zobelle?" she asks them both.

Tig glares at her and she is taken aback to see the rage on his face, but it is Kozik who responds. "White Hate. He's got strong connections with the Aryan brotherhood. He was trying to get drugs into Charming, so we ran him out of town a year or so back..."

"Bastard got Chibb's almost blown up and Gemma was raped by his men. He's also responsible for some of us ending up in prison last year" adds Tig.

"Maybe here in revenge for his daughter?" asks Kozik to Tig. He notices the puzzled look on Jade's face. "Gemma shot her in self-defence..."

"I don't give a shit!" Tig adds. The rage was still barely held back but still showed in his voice. "If it wasn't for Jax's kid being taken we would've finished our business with him. He's made the biggest fucking mistake of his life coming back here..."

"It would explain where the money for this set-up comes from" muses Kozik.

It goes silent between them, as Tig looks through the binoculars to check on the lookouts.

"What's the plan?" asks Jade.

Tig continues to look through the binoculars, as if he didn't want to confront her directly. "You stay right here. This isn't your fight any more..."

"But I can ..." begins Jade.

"He's right, Mrs Hunter" adds Kozik. "This is going to get real bloody. It's no longer a rescue mission, this is something we need to finish here and now. This is club business..."

"Fuck club business" she states, and both men turn to look at her in response to the tough tone to her voice. She'd just about had enough of both men's attitude towards her. "I made a promise to get Ellie's father home safely. If it gets bloody, then that's just tough shit on the Mercs down there for taking money from some low-life."

Kozik and Tig exchange a dumbfounded look. Tig finds his anger fading away, and a wan smile crosses his face. "I think I'm getting to like you more and more, Jade Hunter. But please could you tone down the language..."

"Fuck you" she sharply retorts, and Tig gets the impression that she had just been pushed too far.

"I'm up for that, but it's not the time right now. Maybe later..." responds Tig. He instantly regrets saying that to her. She glares at him, and he offers an apologetic grin in return. Kozik snorts in laughter as if he was finding the situation funny. Jade abruptly sighs as she looks back towards the plant and tries to calm her anger.

"Okay, fun-times over" advises Kozik. "I suggest I go find a spot nearer to the Plant, to take out the lookouts? Give me five minutes to get in place and set-up with the rifle. Then start down towards the building and I'll catch you up once I've taken both men out. That plan okay with you?"

"I guess it's the best plan in the circumstances" advises Tig reluctantly. "There's still a man sitting in the car, but I should be able to get to him quietly. They won't be expecting any sort of attack..."

"Fine with me..." agrees Jade.

"I told you..." Tig begins to argue, as he turns to her.

"Let her help, Tig" interrupts Kozik. "We could use the extra pair of hands..."

Tig glares at him, but nods in reluctance. Kozik silently gets himself up onto his knees as he slings the rifle across his back. He gets onto his feet, but still keeps himself low to the ground as he heads towards the plant. Tig hands him the binoculars as Kozik passes him.

It goes quiet between Tig and Jade as they watch Kozik make his way down the hillside. Tig rolls over onto his back once Kozik is out of sight, as he decides to take a rest. He looks at his watch to note the time and then looks up at the sky; which was now clearing as the clouds were moving away. Jade takes several more photographs on her camera, to gauge where the Mercenaries are located around the building.

"Sorry, Jade" Tig suddenly apologises. "Didn't mean to take my anger out on you. My mouth tends to work before my brain sometimes..."

She is silent for a moment, before responding. "I seem to be picking up some real bad habits from you, Mr Trager. I shouldn't have sworn at you like that..."

Tig laughs. "Then I'm sorry for trying to get a reaction out of you all night. I guess it worked, but remind me never to get you real pissed at me..."

He turns his head so he is looking at her and she offers him a weak smile. "Apology accepted" she responds.

"I also owe you for everything you've done tonight. I guess I haven't had a chance to thank you for saving my life..." he pauses as he notices the embarrassed look across her face. He kind of liked the way her cheeks blushed red.

"You're welcome" she advises softly, as she looks back down towards the plant as if trying to hide her reaction.

"We still gonna be friends?" he asks hopefully.

She looks back at him, and Tig isn't sure what to make of the sad look she gives him. "I really don't think..." she begins to say

"At least think about it?" he asks, offering her another smile.

She looks at him and he notices that her green eyes are luminous under the moonlight. She looks intensely into his eyes, and he feels a pulls towards her. He has the intense feeling that she was attracted towards him in return; but she wasn't showing any of her normal self-assurance. It was almost as if she was struggling with her reaction to him. But then she abruptly looks away again and he finds he is disappointed. It goes quiet between them again.

"So what unit were you in, Mr Trager?" she asks, as if changing the conversation to a safer subject.

"I'll make you a deal, Jade. You tell me why you won't call me Tig and I'll tell you where I did my military service..." Tig responds.

She turns back towards him and Tig is surprised to see the smile across her face. It dawns on him that she rarely smiled. But he also liked the way the smile changed the light in her eyes and gave her a softer look. "I had a cat called Tig. I was really young when I watched her run over by a truck. I cried for weeks..." she explains.

"I always thought Tig was more of a dog's name..." responds Tig, as he looks at his watch. He realises it is time to get moving, and begins to get himself to his feet.

"Actually, the cat's name was Tiger. Only I was only three when I got her; and couldn't say Tiger. I called her just Tig or Tig-Tig..." she responds, as she quickly gets up to stand beside him.

"Jesus, don't tell that one to Kozik!" laughs Tig. "He'll be calling me Tig-Tig forever..."

"Where on earth did you get a name like that?" she asks, as she turns around and starts to lead the way down the trail. Tig picks up that her eyesight was pretty sharp despite the dim moonlight.

"Real long story. I might tell you over a beer sometime..." he responds as he follows her.

"I don't drink" she adds.

"Over dinner, then?" he asks.

"Not going on a date with you, Mr Trager..." she replies.

"Friends, remember? Friends go out for dinner together without it being a date..." he responds.

"So what unit were you in?" she asks. She misses the smile on Tigs face as it suddenly dawns on him that she always changed the subject when she got too uncomfortable with the conversation.

"Marines. Second Battalion, Seventh Core..." he advises.

"The War Dogs?" she automatically states.

"And how would you know that? You in the core, too? I know they take on women now..." he asks in curiosity.

"My grandfather and father were both in the Marines..." she responds.

"Military brat?" he confirms.

"Not exactly..." she responds.

"What does 'not exactly' mean?" he queries; thinking he had finally discovered where here military background came from.

"Enough of the questions, Mr Trager. I suggest we keep the noise down" she responds, having lowered her own voice. Tig comprehends what she means, as he realises they had almost reached the fence area.

She bends down so as she cautiously makes her way towards an area of bushes that provides some cover. Tig quietly follows her, but he has to have the last word. "If you're not gonna call me Tig..." he whispers "...Then you can call me Alex."

She doesn't respond, and Tig grins at her back. She had no idea that it was a huge compromise that he had offered to be called by his Christian name. The only other person he had ever let get away with calling him Alex was his grandmother. She had been gone now for almost twenty-five years, but she was the only one in his family he had ever been fond of. He had the oddest feeling that his grandma would have liked Jade.

They were both independent, beautiful and fun to be around. As well as being tough, honest and direct. The difference was that his grandma had been old and way past her best. Jade, however, was the hottest and sexiest woman he had ever met. The woman he was determined that one day he would make his very own.

He just hadn't quite figured out how to achieve that yet. But becoming friends was a good start...

Zobelle

Jax and Clay had been taken to a room that looked like it had once been some sort of office. It was now empty, apart from three sturdy-looking chairs; two of which the prisoners had been securely tied to. The South African had disappeared, but two of the mercenaries had stayed behind to guard their prisoners. They had remained silent as they had positioned themselves by the door with semi-automatics in their hands.

It is quiet for a while, and then the door suddenly opens. The South African man opens the door, and turns around as if to lead the way for someone behind him. It is with shock and surprise that both Clay and Jax recognise the man who walks in next.

Ethan Zobelle had changed in the year and a half since Clay had run him out of town and had almost executed him for raping Gemma. His hair was now completely silver and his face had more lines. He walked with a cane as he had a limp. He silently hobbles up to where Clay and Jax exchange a silent look, whilst one of the gunmen closes the door behind him.

"Good morning, gentlemen. It has been a long time..." advises Zobelle.

"Not bloody long enough..." states Clay. "I am fucking going to kill you, Zobelle..."

"Language, Mr Morrow" admonishers Zobelle as he glances at the two men and the South African who were standing to one side. It was if he was making a point that he was in total control. He turns back to Clay with a wan smile. "You are hardly in any position to threaten me..."

Jax struggles in his chair with sudden anger, and one of the men points his gun towards him as if to keep him covered. "You're a dead man, prick!" he exclaims.

Zobelle laughs as if he was finding the situation funny. "Sticks and stones, Mr Teller. You should know by now that I make my plans very carefully..." He nods towards the South African, who pulls the spare chair forward for him. Zobelle takes a seat a few feet away from the two SAMCRO men, as he leans against the cane in front of him. "I have looked forward to this day for the past eighteen months..."

"Fuck you!" exclaims Clay.

"I am not the one who is going to be in that position before the end of today, Mr Morrow" advises Zobelle. "I have something to say to both of you before you are executed. I want you to understand the reason I am doing this..."

Clay and Jax exchange another glance, as they both realise that neither of them had any choice but to listen to their captor. "I'm guessing the Feds don't know you're doing this?" interrupts Jax, as he remembers that Zobelle had turned out to be a snitch for the government.

Zobelle has an annoyed look across his face for a moment. "I'm afraid my agreement with the Agency had to be curtailed due to your interference, Mr Teller. I would have come back sooner if I had not had to change my plans. Still, we adjust and adapt as best we can..."

"Good" interrupts Jax. "Because I am going to take my time when I kill you and the Feds won't worry too much when your body turns up at the side of some road somewhere..."

Zobelle offers him a smile. "I have spent a great deal of my money on achieving my goal, Mr Teller. I forgive you for thinking there is any way out of this for you or your brothers at SAMCRO. I have planned this down to the very last detail and covered every contingency."

"So this is all about revenge?" asks Clay.

"If I wanted just revenge, Mr Morrow, then it would have been easier to just put out a contract on you all. I have been pondering this for a very long time. You took my daughter from me, as well as almost taking my life..." advises Zobelle.

Clay and Jax look at each other in puzzlement, and Zobelle notices.

"Of course I'm aware that it was your wife who killed Polly, Mr Morrow!" responds Zobelle. "If I had just wanted revenge for her death it would have been easy to have your wife killed. But then I realised that that would be too quick. I need her to suffer as I have done for the last year. That is why she and the other women and children were taken" he offers them a grim smile. "Oh, I really do plan to let them free and unharmed. But when this is over, they will all be bereft of their fathers, sons and husbands. A motorcycle club with only widows and grieving mothers; and no men. Fitting, I thought, for my beloved daughter's epitaph..."

"I bet you really miss her..." interrupts Clay. Zobelle looks at him as if he is unsure why Clay is offering him any sympathy. "Must have been a real daddy's girl. She'd do anything, wouldn't she, for you? Including letting you into her bed..."

Ethan Zobelle's face shows his anger for a moment, but then he suddenly realises that Clay is only trying to get to him. He looks up at the South African, and nods. The man quickly steps up and lashes Clay harshly across the face, knocking him and the chair he is tied to over onto the floor.

"My Polly was always a loving daughter, Mr Morrow. And not in the way you mean. I would appreciate it if you would not sully her good name" requests Zobelle.

The South African reaches forward as if to pick up Clay and put him upright, but Zobelle shakes his head at him. "Leave him. He will die like the dog he is, whether lying down or sitting up." He turns to look at Jax, who glares at him in return. "Your brothers will all be executed first. I am going to make you both watch, Mr Teller. You will have a brief time left to ponder your..."

Zobelle pauses as an almighty crash comes from outside. It sounded like a vehicle crashing through something, followed by the eerie sound of a revving engine.

"I'll go see what that is..." volunteers the South African, as he grabs one of the other men and opens the door. He nods towards the other man as if he was to stay with the Zobelle and the prisoners; and then hesitantly walks out.

Jax turns towards where Clay was laying with his face on the floor. Neither of them could hide the hope on their faces as they swap a glance. Something was going on, and with a bit of luck it meant that they would finally get out of the desperate situation they were in...

Crashing The Party

The South African and his colleague warily leave the office; their automatic guns in their hands ready to shoot at the first sign of danger. They instantly see the reason for the sound of the revving engine. The expensive sedan that had brought in Zobelle, had smashed through the front entrance and then crashed against a large water-pipe to one side of the open area. The car was a total write-off; but miraculously the engine had still carried on running. However, before either of them can move closer to investigate they both find themselves under rapid fire and dive for the nearest cover behind some oil drums.

Neither of them was to know that the three men who had been left outside on guard had all been taken care of. Kozik had successfully taken out the two men on the roof, although it had taken three shots instead of two. The man in the sedan had been smoking a cigarette in the passenger front seat, when Tig had abruptly opened the door and used the butt of his gun to knock out the Mercenary.

Surprisingly, it was Kozik who had come up with the idea of using the expensive car as a battering ram (he said he'd seen it in a movie). He had quickly found a foot-long piece of wood and had turned over the engine before pulling the car forward right in front of the doors. He had then used the wood to put on the gas pedal, and then hurriedly taken off the brake before jumping out.

They had quickly followed the sedan as it crashed through the front wall. Kozik ran right behind the vehicle, whilst Jade and Tig each took a side of the entrance. Kozik was the first to open fire against the two men who had appeared from an office towards the back of the open area, as he took cover behind the sedan.

Jade and Tig had quickly followed through the large hole they had created; both of them firing off shots. Jade had taken cover behind a stairwell that led upstairs to empty offices, whilst Tig had taken cover behind a series of pipes on the left-hand side.

"Give it up, guys!" shouts out Tig as he briefly looks over the pipes he was hiding behind. "We've already set the women and kids free and taken out the men at the house and outside. You're on your fucking own now!"

His comments are met by more automatic fire as Tig ducks his head back down. He suddenly hears the sound of a gun clicking on an empty cartridge. He cautiously looks out again, but then hears two series of shots. He quickly looks over the pipes to assess the situation. Jade is standing slightly away from the shelter, her handgun in her hand. It was obvious she had taken a shot at the men on the opposite side of the building. Tig notices that Kozik had also come out from his cover behind the sedan whilst shooting.

It goes eerily quiet. Kozik is standing beside the driver's side of the sedan, and quickly puts his hand through the open window to turn the key and kill the engine. Tig begins to stand up as he realises that the two men were no longer returning fire.

The sound of a voice from behind the oil drums causes Tig to abruptly raise his gun again. "Hold fire! I surrender!"

Tig begins to step towards the oil drums, but Jade runs up so that she is just ahead of him. Kozik isn't far behind. "Throw out your weapons!" shouts Tig; annoyed that Jade seems to be automatically taking the lead as all three of them head towards the drums. He was only slower because his ribs were still giving him some trouble.

An automatic is abruptly thrown out and slides across the floor. "All of your weapons, man!" exclaims Tig.

"The other guys dead!" responds the man. "His guns stuck under his body, I can't get to it..."

"You've got thirty seconds to chuck out the other gun or we start shooting!" shouts out Kozik.

"Shit, man! You hit me in the arm and I'm bleeding pretty badly. Give me a minute..." responds the man.

Tig takes a moment to think through his next move. He looks around; as it suddenly dawns on him that there were still three of the Mercenaries unaccounted for. "Kozik?" he whispers "Can you take care of this?"

"Sure" agrees Kozik, as he cautiously steps towards the oil drums. He realises there is some cover behind another set of pipes, and leans down so he is out of range.

"Jade, with me" he requests as he starts to head towards the back of the building where the men had originally appeared from. She silently follows him, her gun ready to offer cover. Tig briefly glances at her to check she wasn't annoyed with him for ordering her around. He is surprised for a moment that she has a serious but calm look on her face.

In the meantime, both Zobelle and the last Mercenary are waiting for the others to return. They had heard the exchange of fire, but then it had gone quiet. Zobelle beings to look worried as he glances towards the other man.

"Didn't plan for this, did you, Zobelle?" states Clay from his position on the floor.

"I would appreciate if you would be quiet, Mr Morrow" responds Zobelle.

"Hey you!" Jax shouts out to the only man in the room who was now armed. "You take care of this prick and untie us; then I promise we'll let you go free..."

"Shut it, Teller" responds the man. Both Clay and Jax pick up on the nervous tone of the man, and exchange another glance.

"Do you have a spare gun?" Zobelle suddenly asks the mercenary. The man looks again at the two men who were tied up, as if trying to make a decision. "I am paying you a lot of money for this. I'll add another thousand if you give me a weapon" prompts Zobelle.

The mercenary seems to make a decision, and pulls out the handgun from his holster. He steps forward as if to offer it to Zobelle. Ethan gets up from his chair as if to collect it. He doesn't notice that Clay suddenly shuffles himself along the floor towards them, despite his hands behind tied to the chair behind him.

There is less than a foot between Zobelle and the mercenary when the office door is abruptly smashed open. Tig stands in the doorway, and instantly assesses the situation. He fires at the mercenary before he even gets a chance to turn around. The two shots accurately hit the man in the back and he falls forward.

Zobelle is quick despite his lame leg. He drops his cane and reaches forward as if to catch the man's gun as it drops from his hand. Clay is faster. He is near enough behind Zobelle to kick at him, and Zobelle loses his footing and falls flat on his face onto the floor.

"Shit!" swears Tig as he steps forward, his gun ready for any further trouble. However, it is obvious the mercenary is already dead. Tig hurriedly steps forward and kicks the handgun away that had landed on the floor between the dead man and Zobelle. Zobelle turns himself over but decides to stay where he is when he sees the warning look from the club's Sergeant-at-arms.

It goes quiet for a moment, until they can all hear Kozik's faint voice from the main area. "Tig, I've got the wounded merc tied up! The other one's definitely dead. You okay in there?"

Tig shakes his head to himself. Kozik could be pretty dumb sometimes. There were still two other mercenaries unaccounted for, and they could be anywhere in the building. "Stay out there, Kozik!" he shouts over his shoulder. "Keep an eye out for the other mercs!"

"For once I am glad to see your ugly mug, Tig" states Jax with a huge grin on his face. "You mind..." he begins.

Jax pauses in shock as he suddenly notices the figure that has moved out from the cover of the door and is warily standing behind Tig, the handgun lowered in her hands but ready at the first sign of any further trouble. Tig turns around when he notices the surprised and gob-smacked look on Jax's face; as if he was not sure why Jax looked so surprised. He misses the look on Clay's face as well, who had turned his head to see what was going on. Clay's eyebrow begins to rise as he also notices the woman standing just behind Tig.

Tig turns back with a grin on his face. "Oh, yeah..." he starts to explain. He notices Clay's face starts to turn to irritation. "She's with me" he pauses as he glances at Clay directly, who is starting to look really pissed. It suddenly dawns on him that Clay had never really got over his anger at Jade from their previous meeting. "... I mean, she's with us. The club, I mean..."

Tig goes quiet as Clay glowers at him. Tig drops his gaze as if he gets the impression Clay was furious with him and the fact she was here. He feels his head bow as if he was a little boy caught doing something wrong.

Jax is the only one who is still looking at Jade whilst Clay and Tig are swapping looks. He notices the amused look cross her face as she watches the two older men in their silent communication. He finds himself smiling at her, and she raises her eyebrow at him. "Well, I appreciate your help, Mrs Hunter" Jax interrupts the uncomfortable silence. "As I was just asking Tig. You wouldn't mind untying me, would you?"

She gingerly returns his smile, before holstering her handgun and then pulling the knife from her side as she steps around Tig. She keeps her distance from Zobelle who has warily sat up but stays silent. She then walks up behind Jax's chair and quickly and efficiently cuts through his bonds.

"Get me the fuck out of this!" Clay suddenly barks as he looks back up at Tig.

Tig automatically reaches for his knife-sheaf, but realises that despite the fact he had several hand-guns on him that he had not re-armed himself with a knife. It suddenly dawns on him that Jade was the only one in the room who had something to cut through their bonds. He tries to avoid Clay's glowering look as he steps forward.

However, Jade passes the knife hilt-first without comment to Jax as she finally cuts through the bonds at his feet. Jax grins at her as he unsteadily gets to his feet and then moves towards Clay. He reaches down behind the chair on the floor and starts to cut through his bonds.

Jade abruptly turns around as if she has heard something. Jax pauses as he cuts through Clay's bonds and Tig also turns around to see what she is looking at. Zobelle had started to crawl towards the door whilst everyone's attention was away from him. He pauses when he notices the young woman suddenly turning towards him. Tig then steps forward and takes a kick at Zobelle's stomach. "Fucking stay where you are, Zobelle." He then turns back to Clay and Jax.

Jax quickly goes back to finishing cutting through Clay's bindings, and then helps him to his feet.

"You wanna tell me how you found us?" asks Clay of Tig, as he heads towards where the handgun from the mercenary was still on the floor. He bends down to pick it up.

"We managed to get one of the mercs to talk after..." begins Tig.

Before Tig can explain further Jax interrupts. "God, what about Tara and the kids..."

"Jesus, Gemma!" exclaims Clay as it suddenly hits him that he still didn't know if she was safe and sound.

"Everyone's okay..." confirms Tig "... Should be at the cop-shop by now..."

Jax and Clay swap a look of relief. Clay then turns towards Jade, who has silently moved to the side of the room as she watches the others. "This all down to you, Mrs Hunter?" he asks.

Jax and Tig exchange a surprised look that Clay's tone is polite and no longer showing his anger. Clay was still angry; but his anger was directed at the bastards who had captured them. He was still finding it hard to hide his astonishment that Mrs Hunter was here with Tig. Mind you, Tig was always pulling odd stunts like this...

"I was just helping out, Mr Morrow..." states Jade; cautiously watching Clay as if she was waiting for him to lose his temper with her again. Tig stays quiet, even though he wanted to argue that she had more than just 'helped'. He knew that Jade was the main reason he was still alive and therefore able to rescue Clay and Jax. It was just too long a story to go through right now.

She is surprised when Clay suddenly grins at her in gratitude. He turns towards Tig with the same grin and his Sergeant-at-Arms looks taken aback. "Like your taste in assistants, Tig..."

Out of The "Can"

Happy was still trying to open the lock on their cell, when they had all heard the faint sound of gunfire. There had then been the sound of shouted voices, but because the main door was locked they couldn't figure out what was being said or what was going on. It had then abruptly gone quiet, and Happy had gone back to furiously trying to pick the lock.

"Shit, what's going on out there!" Juice asks the obvious question.

Opie shrugs his shoulders, as he realises that there wasn't much they could do but wait and see. He was still concerned about his wife and kids and was finding it hard to put on a brave face right now.

"Got it!" Happy suddenly shouts out. He hurriedly pulls off the lock that he had managed to open; more down to luck than skill. He pushes the cell door open, as the others start to crowd behind him as he starts to walk out.

Happy pauses as he hears the sound of the lock on the main door being released. He rushes forward with Juice, Chibbs and then Opie a moment behind. Bobby and Piney are more wary as they follow; but they realise that even though none of them were armed it was the best chance they had of getting out of there.

The door begins to open and Happy puts a spurt into his pace despite the fact there was some distance between him and the opening door. He sees a hand first that is holding a weapon; and is ready to throw himself at the person entering the room. The automatic gun begins to be raised as if ready to shoot.

However, there are two simultaneous shots that ring out from behind where the mercenary was about to enter the room. The man falls forward in the doorway; he is dead before he hits the ground. One bullet hole had gone through the back of his head and the other had caught him in his back but straight through the heart.

Happy abruptly skids to a halt when he first recognises the woman who carefully moves around the open door and steps over the dead body. He finds his feet slipping and ends up on the floor on his backside; Juice is just behind him and ends up colliding with Happy's body and falling right on top of him. Chibbs is following the two of them and only just stops short; more to avoid running into Juice and Happy than in recognition of the second figure that walks in just behind Jade.

Opie had been more cautious than the three of them, and was still a short length behind. "Jax, man!" shouts out Opie as he instantly recognises his life-long friend.

Jax grins at his colleagues as he also steps over the corpse in the doorway to stand beside the young woman. Jade has her eyebrow raised as she takes in the scene before her; with Happy and Juice both still on the floor in an untidy pile. Happy is struggling to get Juice off him; as the young Puerto-Rico is stunned into immobility as he recognises the woman in the doorway. He is staring at her with his mouth agape.

"Fucking get off me, prick!" shouts Happy and punches Juice on the arm. Juice suddenly realises he is still on top of Happy in a compromising position and hurriedly gets to his feet. He is still gazing at Jade with a flabbergasted look on his face.

Happy quickly gets to his feet, as Bobby and the others step forward to gather round Jax. Jade cautiously takes a step back from the group as she watches Opie and Jax hug.

"Shit, laddie. We thought you and Clay were a gonna..." exclaims Chibbs as he looks on.

"Mrs Hunter?" Juice hesitantly asks as he steps forward towards Jade with an inane grin on his face. He finds himself abruptly pushed aside as Happy takes a step forward at the same time with his hand outstretched.

"We meet at last, Mrs Hunter" states Happy. "So very glad to make your acquaintance..."

Jax and Opie swap an amused grin; it was very unlike Happy to be so polite to a woman. Nor did he usually use words like 'acquaintance'. He tended to me a one-syllable kind-of-guy.

Jade suspiciously looks at his outstretched arm; which Happy drops when he realises she wasn't going to shake his hand. He ignores the disappointed "Hey!" behind him from Juice. Juice didn't like the fact that Happy had pushed him out of the way; but knew that it wasn't a good idea to get the wrong side of his fellow brother.

"You mind explaining what the fuck's been going on?" asks Piney. He was annoyed that everyone seemed to be distracted by the presence of the young woman that he had previously heard about. He had to admit she was pretty; but maybe he was just getting to old for a good-looking woman to affect him anymore...

"Tig and Kozik came to our rescue. Along with Mrs Hunter here..." begins Jax.

"It's just Jade" advises the woman. She was tired of everyone calling her 'Mrs Hunter'. She puts the gun in her hand into her holster as she realises that the last remaining mercenary wasn't already with the other prisoners; and everyone was safe for the moment.

Jax pauses for a moment to take in this new piece of information. Jade – a pretty name. "Everybody's safe, guys. They got the women and kids out..." he confirms to the others.

"Jesus, thank God!" interrupts Opie. He had been real worried about Lyla and his children.

"Mr Winston?" Jade suddenly interrupts. Opie turns towards her, as do the other members of SAMCRO. She looks a little uncomfortable they are all now looking at her and she is the centre of attention. "Ellie sent me to come find you..."

"She did? She okay?" he asks in surprise and concern.

She offers him a small smile. "She's fine. So are Kenny and your wife; they'll be safely with the authorities by now..."

"Tig said she saved Ellie's life..." adds Jax.

Opie was never one to stand on ceremony. He abruptly steps forward and Jade finds herself enclosed in a bear-hug. "Thank you for your help, Mrs Hunter" he whispers in her ear before letting her go. Opie notices that her body had stiffened as he had hugged her in gratitude; but she had not pushed him away. He notices the slight flush in her cheeks as she takes a step back from the group of men.

Happy and Juice swap a smile as the same thought crosses their minds and they both take a step forward; they were up for hugging her too. Bobby coughs in his throat; as if he was warning the younger men that they both needed to behave. "Okay, what now?" he asks as he gives them a hard look and they stop in their tracks.

"There any more of the mercs around?" asks Chibbs.

"Just the one now" confirms Jax. "Tig and Clay are taking a look outside to find him..."

Bobby looks around the area that had been their prison. "Let's just get the fuck out of here..."

Jax turns around as if to lead them out of the room. Happy quickly steps forward first, and roughly pulls the dead mercenary away from the entrance. Opie removes the dead man's semi-automatic whilst Happy relieves the corpse of his handgun.

Jax takes the lead, and the others follow. Jade is the last to leave, as she quietly closes the door behind them. The eyes of the dead man are still open and stare up at the ceiling. Like the rest of the men that Zobelle had hired, he had thought this was going to be easy money. His last reflection had been what a mistake that had been...

Fear

Jax leads his brothers to the main area of the compound. He is greeted by Kozik, who is standing by the damaged sedan. He had put the wounded mercenary in the back of the vehicle with the other unconscious mercenary. He was now watching Zobelle whilst Tig and Clay had gone to do a quick reconnaissance around the outside to find the last mercenary. Zobelle was leaning up against the side of the vehicle, with his cane in his hand.

Happy and the others are surprised as they recognise the man Kozik is minding. Zobelle meets the stares of the men who he had hoped to have executed; and for the first time fear starts to show in his eyes.

"Shit, should've known you were behind this!" exclaims Bobby.

"Fucking prick" mumbles Juice.

However, it is Opie who finally loses it when he realises that this was the man who had been responsible for putting his family – and the rest of the women and kids belonging to SAMCRO - in danger. Before anybody can stop him, he rushes forward and hits Zobelle across the face with a vicious right hook. As Zobelle collapses, Opie grabs him around the neck. Jax abruptly releases that Opie has every intention of strangling their common enemy, and hurries forward as if to stop him.

"Opie, back off!" shouts out Clay as he and Tig walk in from the hole at the front of the building.

It takes the combined effort of Juice, Chibbs and Jax to finally pull off Opie from Zobelle. Opie still has fury on his face, as he shakes off his brothers and has to take a few steps back as he tries to calm his anger.

Zobelle leans heavily onto his cane as he tries to keep himself upright, as he puts his left hand around his sore neck and takes lungfuls of air. "Thank you, Mr Morrow" he croaks.

"Quiet, shit-head!" responds Clay as he approaches the rest of the group. "One more word out of you and I'll give you back to Opie..." He looks around as if checking everybody was present and correct and that no-one had been killed or injured.

Happy steps forward and stands in front of Zobelle, as if he was taking charge of their prisoner. Zobelle finds himself standing up straight in stubborn pride, and looks up at Happy's face. He finds himself having to look away from the cold and deadly glint in the bald-headed man's eyes.

"I heard shots. You run into trouble?" asks Kozik to Jax, to break the silence that suddenly descends on the group of men and one woman.

"Took out another merc" advises Jax. He grins as he glances towards Jade, who was leaning up against the other end of the vehicle and keeping her distance. "Mrs ... Jade's a good shot. Straight through the back of the head; I only got him in the back..."

"That only leaves the one left" adds Tig as he winks at Jade. He'd been keeping count. She looks startled for a moment, but he then turns back to Jax. "Nobody outside as far as we could tell; all the vehicles are still here..."

"Probably legged it..." states Chibbs "...when he realised he was on his own..."

"You want me to go take another look round?" volunteers Happy with a sound of glee in his voice at the thought of finally getting some pay-back. He liked a good man-hunt.

"Nah, if I was him I'd be shitting myself and be halfway to Lodi by now" advises Clay. He steps towards the car to take a look at the wounded mercenary. The guy had finally passed out from loss of blood, so for the moment wasn't any kind of threat.

Clay turns towards Happy. "Happy, bring him..." Clay begins to walk out towards the open space before the sedan. The others silently follow.

SAMCRO Justice

Jade quietly watches at the scene that unfolds in front of her. She wasn't sure exactly what was going on but she got the distinct impression that this was something that the men from SAMCRO had done before. It was only later on that she came to understand that she was witnessing a ritual that very few outside of the club knew about.

She decides to stay silent and unobtrusive as she watches the men all move to the open area. They had formed a rough circle, and man who had introduced himself earlier had pulled Zobelle into the middle of the men before taking his place. Mr Kozik was the only one who did not join the group of men. He had sidled up to join Jade where she was leaning against the vehicle and had smiled at her before turning back to watch his colleagues. She wasn't sure why he was not joining the others.

Clay suddenly seems to notice where Kozik was standing. "You're in on this, Kozik" he advises.

"But I'm not patched in..." begins the man with blond hair.

"This affects you too..." responds Clay Morrow, before turning back to glare at Zobelle.

Jade watches as Kozik saunters over to the circle of men and takes his place between the young Puerto-Rican called Juice and the bald-headed man. She wasn't sure what 'patched in' actually meant, but she had noticed that the jacket that Kozik wore seemed different from the others.

The youngest member of SAMCRO kept steeling glances at her, she notices. She recalls meeting him at the grocer's in Charming and becoming really annoyed with him. He hadn't seemed to understand what 'leave me alone' had meant and she'd had to be pretty aggressive towards him to make him back-off.

To the other side of Kozik was the tallest club-member. Jade took a moment to try and remember the bald-headed man's name from the prison records she had read the previous month. Smiley? No, his nickname had been 'Happy' she recalled. Maybe something to do with the tattoos on his arm that appeared to be "smiley" faces?

Zobelle was nervously looking around at the group of men that surrounded him. It was silent amongst the men from SAMCRO, as if they were waiting for something. She had no sympathy for the man who had hired mercenaries to kidnap women and children. Nor for the mercenaries who she had killed already that evening.

She knew her first shot at the black man had been accurate and deadly. Clay Morrow had mentioned that he had appeared to have been the leader and was South African; he had admired the shot that had killed him. The other hired-gun who had been guarding the door had also been taken down quickly; her shot had been to the head but Jax Teller had also managed to shoot him through the back into his heart.

She had automatically checked the mercenaries' faces to see if she had recognised any of them. The South African she was pretty sure she hadn't met before; but his face had been vaguely familiar. She was certain she must have seen him on a 'wanted' notice at some point. Maybe on an INTERPOL list? But she had been out of the "job" for over a year now, so it was difficult to remember that far back...

Her thoughts are interrupted as Zobelle is surprisingly the first to speak.

"Just over seven hundred-thousand..." he states as he looks at the men surrounding him. Jade picks up on the fact that although the man was obviously terrified he was trying his best to hide his fear. "That is every cent I have. I'll give it to the man or men who get me out of here alive..."

Jade watches as Zobelle looks around as if he was trying to determine if any of the men would take him up on his offer. She is surprised that they all return his stare with various degrees of contempt and loathing. Not one of them seemed to be showing any indication that they were considering Zobelle's offer.

"You really think any of us would sell out for money?" asks the roundest man in the group in disgust. Jade seemed to recall this man's name was 'Bobby' something.

Maybe she had got these bikers wrong. She had thought these men were all just a bunch of motor-cycling thugs; out for the women, drugs and money. But there was obviously a strong bond and sense of brotherhood and family between them. She had the intense feeling that these men considered Zobelle's offer an insult to not only themselves but to the jackets they all wore.

"You would have killed our women and children..." adds Opie Winston in anger. Jade could see that he was still furious with Zobelle. She couldn't blame him; if she had a family like Ellie and Kenny she would have been in a murderous mood too.

"No!" exclaims Zobelle. "I planned to let them go. It was just the men I was after..." It was obvious to Jade that he had thought someone would take him up on his offer and he would escape; but now the man was beginning to lose hope.

"Yeah, and I'm the fucking tooth fairy..." adds "Tig" Trager. "None of the Mercs who took our women and kids tried to hide their faces. You're men had no intention of letting any of them go as live witnesses..."

Jade picks up on the look of surprise on Zobelle's face. It was probable that he had really intended not to harm the women and children. But she had already figured out that the men involved in this must have been from the 'bottom of the barrel' in the mercenary community. It was pretty likely that the men he had hired had figured on killing any witnesses (including Zobelle) after he had paid them. The Serbian who liked to hurt children wouldn't have been accepted into any group of genuine mercenaries; even men-for-hire had their professional standards.

She also knew that very few Soldiers-of-Fortune tended to work within US borders. It was too dangerous to work in a country that had so many government agencies; and one of the best law-enforcements in the world. There were easier pickings in other countries around the world. Not that this was information she planned to share with the men from SAMCRO. Zobelle had already dug his own grave as far as she was concerned...

"I didn't..." began Zobelle.

"I call the vote" interrupts Opie Winston. "He's already admitted he planned to kill all of us..."

Jade picks up on the cold tone to his voice. She was not sure what he meant by 'calling the vote'. She watches in puzzlement as Clay looks around at all of the men in silent communication.

"Anybody have anything else to say?" he asks.

"Vengeance is mine sayeth the lord. The prick was already dead as soon as he decided to come back to Charming" The man who said this appeared to be the oldest in the group. Jade couldn't remember his name, but seemed to recall that he was Opie Winston's father. Ellie's grandfather...

The old man slowly raises his hand. Jade watches in surprise as the rest of his brothers silently follow and they all raise their hands as if taking a vote. Jade finally realises what this meant. Was the Motorcycle Club really some sort of democracy? It was hard for her to admit to herself that she really had been wrong about these men...

At the back of her mind she had noticed that when Tig – Mr Trager – had put up his hand he had winced and his other hand had gone to his chest. A brief look of pain had crossed his face.

"Motion carried" states Clay as the men all put their hands back down.

"I would like to say something" asks Zobelle. Jade notices there is now a resigned look on his face.

Clay glares at him but nods. Jade watches as Zobelle slowly turns around to take a good look at the men surrounding him. If he was still looking for anybody to still take him up on his offer of money-for-freedom, then he was backing a dead horse. She frowns as she remembers that had been one of her husband's favourite sayings.

"I want all of you to know that this is not the way things should have turned out..." he pauses for a moment. Jade then notices that a light has begun to show through the open doorway; it must be approaching dawn already. The light seems to creep across the floor towards Zobelle as if it was his approaching death sentence. "I planned this carefully down to the last detail. Every contingency I could think of. All of you should be dead right now" he sighs to himself as he continues to turn around. "Except you had a wild card; someone I could not anticipate..."

Jade knows surprise shows on her face as Zobelle comes to a halt and is facing her directly. He stares at her and she returns his gaze with a hard look of her own. "... Your wild card, gentlemen. A pretty one at that..."

Jade can feel her body stiffen as she suddenly realises that all of the men from SAMCRO were staring at her. She knew her hand was already on the butt of the gun in her holster in response. It also dawns on her that Zobelle was a sneaky bastard. He knew that he was going to die; but she was the only witness to his 'day in court' and the fact that the club were going to execute him. Not that she minded they had pre-meditated murder in mind; it wasn't any of her concern and the man deserved what they dished out to him. But the stupid bastard had pointed out that she was a witness to a lot of things involving the club in the last twelve hours...

She notices from the corner of her eye that Tig looks furious. He takes a step forward; despite still clutching his chest as if in pain he speaks out loudly. "You're a dead man, you fucking prick!" he turns towards Clay. "Clay, she more than just helped. She saved my fucking arse..."

"Easy, Tig" Clay states calmly and then he briefly offers a surprising smile to Jade before turning his attention towards Zobelle. "SAMCRO looks after their friends, Zobelle..." he pauses and Jade notices the way he looks at Zobelle in thought. She is surprised to see the grin across Clay's face. "It was a good idea, Ethan. Trying to deflect our anger towards someone else..."

"I volunteer to top the bastard..." interrupts the man calling himself 'Happy' "... I don't like pricks that try and blame a pretty women on my watch..."

Jade picks up on the angry note in his voice. She looks around at the other men. Most of them seemed irate or just pissed. And it suddenly dawns on her that she wasn't the target of their fury. Their disgust and anger was directed at Zobelle for assuming that the club was run by mob-rule. That he thought they were mindless animals that would turn on her with the right incentive.

"I call a second vote" interrupts Jax Teller. Jade turns towards him. He offers her a smile as if in apology and re-assurance. Jade pulls her hand away from her gun as she realises she wasn't in any immediate danger.

"Jax?" asks Clay.

"That SAMCRO officially considers Jade Hunter a friend of the club. After tonight, I think she deserves it..." Jax grins at Jade again. She isn't sure what 'friend of the club' means but figures out it was somehow important to the club. She didn't particularly want anything to do with SAMCRO after tonight; but she was clever enough to keep her mouth shut.

"All in favour?" asks Clay, as he glares at Zobelle. It was as if he was making a point to the man that was shortly going to die and nothing was going to stop that from happening.

She looks around at the men as they all raise their hands again. Ellie's grandfather appeared to be hesitant at first, but follows the others. Her gaze falls on Tig who grins at her. He raises his hand and blows her a kiss before he puts his hand straight up in the air again.

She still wasn't sure what to make of Alex "Tig" Trager. It had surprised her that she had felt drawn towards this man; she just couldn't figure out why. After the death of her husband she hadn't felt anything towards another man. For a long time she'd just felt numb. She had tried her best to clamp down on any feelings she had towards Alex Trager; but hadn't had a chance to figure out why she had begun to like him. It had surprised her that he had so easily made her lose her temper on more than one occasion; normally a man like him wouldn't have got to her like that. He was pretty stubborn and persistent, though. She had to give him that. Mark had been just as bloody stubborn at times...

"Motion carried unanimously" states Clay.

Jade is still watching Tig when he begins to lower his hand. He abruptly pauses and a strange but pained look crosses his face as sweat begins to form on his forehead. His hand goes back to his chest and he looks down. "Shit!" he swears.

Jade finds herself stepping forward towards him. "Alex?" she finds herself asking anxiously.

Alex 'Tig' Trager looks back up at her and she finds herself rushing forward as she sees the bewildered look of pain across his face. He collapses towards the hard concrete floor...


	4. Chapter 4  The Hill

Don't Call Me Alex...

Filip "Chibbs" Telford was standing right next to Tig just as he collapsed to the ground. Chibbs had momentarily been puzzled when Jade had spoken; he wasn't sure at first who he meant when she said "Alex?" It took a moment before he realised she was talking about Tig; he'd never heard anyone call his colleague by any other name except "Tig" or some other version of his nickname.

He is just in time as he turns around to catch his fellow club-member before he hits the concrete floor. He carefully lowers Tig to the ground when he realises that his colleague was clutching his ribs in pain; and seemed to have trouble catching his breath. He vaguely hears one of his brothers ask "Who's Alex?" (it may have been Juice) as the rest of the men start to gather around the two of them in concern.

Jade abruptly pushes her way through the group of men and kneels down to Tig in concern. Tig tries his best to hide the pain in his chest and ribs; but can't help but grimace. Jade quickly begins to open his jacket, but it is Chibbs who asks a question. "Where's the pain, Tig?"

"Chest..." responds Tig in a husky whisper.

"Did you feel or hear anything pop?" asks Jade abruptly. Tig picks up on the concern in her voice.

"Nah. Finding it hard to breathe..." he gasps hoarsely.

"What's wrong?" asks a concerned Clay as he leans over the three of them.

"Busted ribs; not sure what else. We need some space..." she states. It was not-quite an order and Clay and Jax exchange a surprised look as the other men automatically start moving back from the area without any arguments.

"Anything we can do?" asks Jax.

"Could you see if you can find some blankets and anything we can use as a pillow?" she requests "We need to keep him immobile but warm..." She pulls off the rucksack off her back and takes out her med-kit. She turns back to Chibbs to find that he has already started to unbutton Tig's shirt.

"Hey, keep your hands to yourself..." advises Tig as he suddenly understands what Chibbs was up to; and he moves his hands as if to stop Chibbs.

Chibbs gives him an exasperated look. In the meantime, Opie and Bobby quickly disappear towards the back of the open area as if to start looking for a blanket. Juice decides there might be something in one of the vans, and hurriedly turns around and heads towards the large hole in the front wall.

"Dinna give me any trouble, laddie..." Chibbs states as he pulls up Tig's shirt.

Jade gently places her hand on the top of Tig's leg. "Do you feel my hand?" she asks.

"Sure, honey" responds Tig. "Maybe a few inches higher and a little in the middle..." he jokingly adds. She removes her hand with a sigh of irritation.

Chibbs pulls open Tig's shirt and notices that the bandages were bound up pretty tightly. He starts to put pressure on his chest with his hands, and about halfway down Tig gasps. Chibbs pulls his hands away and looks back to Jade as they exchange a worried look. "His ribs aren't pushing against any organs; far as I can tell..." advises Chibbs.

"If one of his ribs has moved against his spine; he'd not feel his legs..." adds Jade as she looks across to Chibbs in relief.

He picks up on the query on her face. "Five months training as an army medic..." he states. "I'm Chibbs, by the way..."

She silently nods in acknowledgement before hurriedly opening the med-kit. "I think one of his ribs has moved. Could be air or blood trapped around his lungs. I think we should relieve the pressure..." She pulls out a pair of scissors from the kit and begins to cut through the bandages. "Can you breathe easier, Mr Trager?" Jade asks Tig as she finishes and puts away the scissors.

He nods with a sigh of relief. "Breathings easier. Still hurts like hell..." he exclaims huskily.

"Anything else in there that could help?" asks Chibbs as he looks at the open med-kit.

"Adrenaline shot's all I've got left that I can give him for the pain. I don't want to give that to him unless we have to. He's already taken enough pain-killers to drop a horse..." advises Jade. Tig had taken another three pain-killers when they were making their way to the Water Plant.

"Yeah, that's Tiggy for you..." grins Chibbs.

"Hey, I'm hearing every word down here, guys. I'm in pain not deaf..." advises Tig in annoyance.

Piney suddenly appears beside them with a blanket in his hand. He'd decided to check the boot to the sedan and had been lucky. Jade takes it from him with a silent, thankful look and lays it over Tig. "You need to be checked out properly. It might be something else was damaged when you were beaten up" she explains to Tig.

"Jesus, Tig, what the fuck did they do to you?" asks a concerned Clay as he notices for the first time the bruises across Tig's front and back. Most of them were now going black and the various cuts and abrasions were still weeping or bleeding.

"You should see the other guy..." Tig was embarrassed that Clay was concerned for him.

"We need to call an ambulance..." Jade interrupts sharply, as she begins to pull out her cell-phone.

Before she can start dialling a number Juice rushes up to them and interrupts. "I can see flashing lights in the distance outside..." he advises breathlessly. "Cops are gonna be here in five minutes..."

Opie had just got back from their unsuccessful search and overhears Juice. "How many?" asks Opie.

"Must be every cop-car they have from Charming and Lodi. Whole roads full of them..."

"Shit! State police and ATF are probably on their way too..." adds Bobby.

Clay turns around as he starts thinking. He notices Happy standing by Zobelle as if on guard-duty and picks up on the relief on Zobelle's face that the police were on their way. He turns to Jax and they exchange a silent look; as if he knew what Clay was thinking and Jax had agreed his decision. He turns back to Tig and looks down in concern. "Cops are gonna be here soon, Tig. They might even have medical assistance with them; maybe an ambulance. You okay to hold on for a while?"

Tig begins to nod and the rest of his body moves at the action. He grimaces in pain again. "Stay still, you stupid bastard!" admonishers Chibbs; as he puts his hands on Tig's chest as if to keep him still.

"Okay, boss..." croaks Tig to Clay as he tries to keep stationary.

Clay turns around to Kozik. "The cops won't expect you to be here, Kozik. You think you can sneak out the back with Zobelle?"

"Sure, Clay" Kozik grins as he pulls out his handgun. He takes the safety off before moving to where Happy stood guard.

"I want the prick stashed away till we're ready for him. We're gonna be a while with the cops; and I want to make sure our wives and kids are all okay first. May not be able to sort this out till later tomorrow..." adds Clay to Kozik's back.

"I know a place; he'll be safe enough..." replies Kozik. He grabs Zobelle by the arm and starts to pull him towards a side door he had noticed earlier.

Zobelle tries to pull away, but Kozik is younger and stronger and starts to drag him. Happy leans over the old man and exclaims. "I can knock you out and Kozik can carry you; or you can co-operate and walk on your own feet. Please, please make me hit you..." Ethan Zobelle understands he has no other choice, and reluctantly begins to walk with his cane towards the rear entrance.

"I think you should leave with Kozik, Jade..." advises Jax.

Jade peers back up at him; and Jax picks up on the worry for her patient. "I should stay..."

"Go, lassie" adds Chibbs. "I'll take good care of Tig if you can leave the med-kit..."

Jade looks uncertain as she looks between Jax and Clay. She looks back to Tig who offers her a smile. "He's right, sweetheart. You've done more than enough tonight; go home..." he adds.

Jade seems to make a decision and begins to get to her feet. However, she pauses as Tig puts his hand out to stop her. "You really need to stay absolutely still, Alex..." she advises.

"Wanna ask you something..." he responds, with his hand still on her arm. She kneels back down so she is closer to him.

"Make it quick, Tig..." adds Clay as he nods towards Jax and the others to move away and give them some room. Chibbs stays where he is but reaches forward to bring the med-kit closer to his reach.

Jade looks at Tig Trager with a puzzled look on her face. "I might not make it..." begins Tig.

Before Jade can say anything, the quiet is interrupted by the faint sound of wailing sirens. "You'll be fine..." she states as she gently removes his hand.

"Not so sure about that. Hurts like hell. Only have one regret, though, before I die..." He pauses and then offers Jade a sad smile with puppy-dog eyes. "Never got to kiss you..."

Jade smiles; knowing Tig Trager was going to be all right. He wouldn't be trying it on with her again if he was still seriously hurting. She looks across to Chibb's, who has a grin on his face as he rolls his eyes to the ceiling. "Good try, Mr Trager..." she advises as she promptly gets to her feet and picks up her rack-sack. "Just get that medical care you promised and you'll be fine..."

Tig just looks disappointed and sighs in frustration.

Jade begins to turn away, but instead of heading towards where Kozik and Zobelle had disappeared she heads towards where Clay and Jax were standing near the open front of the building. "Mr Morrow, I'd like to ask a favour..." she asks as both men turn towards her.

Clay raises his eyebrow, but Jax answers first. "We owe you, Jade. What do you need?"

"I was never here..." she states. Jax and Clay exchange a puzzled glance. "As far as the police and ATF are concerned, it would be ... best ... if none of you mentioned that I was here helping you out..."

Opie is standing nearby and interrupts before Jax or Clay can say anything. "None of us will mention anything, Jade. You have our word..."

"Sure, doll..." adds Happy.

"Not a problem, Mrs Hunter..." states Juice shyly.

Jade begins to turn around to leave, but pauses when she hears Jax. "You in trouble with the authorities, Jade?" he asks softly.

Jade turns back around, and Jax is surprised to see the guarded look on her face. "No, nothing like that. It's just..." she pauses "... real complicated. I'd prefer if the police and ATF didn't know about my involvement in any of this. In return, I'll not say anything about Mr Zobelle..."

"You have yourself a deal" states Clay. Although Jax had suggested making her 'a friend' of the club, the thought had been at the back of his mind that she knew too much about the events of the last day-or-so. It would have been awkward if Zobelle's body was ever discovered and she said anything.

Jade turns around as the sound of the distant sirens begins to get nearer. She quickly disappears towards the side-door. The crew patiently wait for the approaching police and ATF vehicles and it goes quiet for a few minutes. Clay walks back towards where Chibbs is carefully watching Tig to make sure he doesn't move again. Tig had closed his eyes as weariness had suddenly overcome him.

"He gonna be okay?" he asks Chibbs.

"The sooner we get him to Hospital, the happier I'll be..." responds Chibbs.

Tig opens his eyes. "I'll be fine, Clay..." he grins. He may not have gotten that kiss from Jade; but he'd had quite an adventure with her tonight and had learnt more about her. Despite the pain he was in; he felt in an especially good mood now that his brothers were also safe.

"You have an interesting friend there..." begins Clay. He suddenly returns Tig's smile. "...Alex..."

Tig scowls at him. Clay already knew he absolutely hated being called by his Christian name. Expect by Jade, it appeared. Clay continues to smile as he walks back to where the police vehicles were now showing in the distance.

It goes quiet for a minute until Tig suddenly shouts out to all of his brothers from where he is lying on the ground. "Okay, guys. I'm only giving you the one warning. Any of you ever call me Alex and I'll slit your fucking throat..."

Blast from The Past

Jade had quickly caught up with Kozik and his prisoner as they had just got to the other side of the fence to the rear of the Water Plant. Jade and Tig had previously found a hole in the fence on their way in; and Kozik had pushed Zobelle through the gap before following him.

"You coming with us?" Kozik asks with a smile on his face for Jade as she bends down through the opening. He notices Zobelle had stopped and turned around to watch them. "Move it, Zobelle" Kozik turns around and brings up the gun in his hand as if to make a point. Zobelle sighs before turning around and begins to hobble up the slope. Kozik and Jade walk side-by-side as they follow.

"Mr Morrow agreed it would be best..." she explains. "Could you drop me off at my pick-up?"

"Sure, doll" responds Kozik. He misses the brief frown on Jade's face that this was another man who wasn't going to call her by her own name. "Where you parked?"

"About half a mile from where the other hostages were being held. I'll direct you when we get to your truck?" she advises.

It goes silent for the next few minutes. Jade notices that Zobelle seems to hesitate for a moment, and then realises the man didn't know which way to go. She quickly walks ahead and starts to take the lead; whilst Kozik remains behind to continue covering Zobelle with his gun.

"The offer is still open to either of you if you would let me go" Zobelle suddenly states. Jade briefly turns around with a look of surprise and notices that Zobelle had stopped.

"Not gonna betray my brothers..." responds an annoyed Kozik. He pushes the mouth of the gun into Zobelle's back as if to tell him get going again.

Jade continues to make her way up the slope, which was now getting steeper. Zobelle looks up at her as if waiting for her to reply. When she stays silent, he decides to speak again. "I apologise for trying to get you in trouble with SAMCRO, young lady. Mrs Hunter, isn't it?" he asks.

"I think you'd best be quiet, Mr Zobelle" responds Jade with a neutral tone to her voice.

"All you'd need to do is get rid of Mr Kozik, here. Then the money's all yours..." responds Zobelle.

He again stops for a moment. Jade turns around and he is surprised to see the look of disgust on her face. "Don't want or need your blood money" she exclaims. However, there is a cautious look on her face as she looks behind Zobelle to where Kozik had also stopped.

It suddenly dawns on Kozik that she was warily looking at the gun in his hand. It was pointed at Zobelle; but also in Jade's general direction. At first he thinks that maybe she was thinking he would take Zobelle up on his offer; and he was going to shoot her. "I have no intention of helping Mr Zobelle go free, Mr Kozik" she advises. He notices that her hand was halfway to her gun.

Kozik looks down at the gun in his own hand. And then the penny drops, as he suddenly realises that she thought he might try and shoot her on the basis that she would attempt to kill him first. He cautiously pulls back on the safety on his gun and puts the gun away into the back of his belt. He beams up at her and she pulls her hand away from her holster, as if in silent agreement.

Kozik abruptly steps up to Zobelle, and smacks him across the face. Zobelle begins to fall to the ground and his hand almost loses his cane; but Kozik grabs hold of him and keeps him on his feet. "Nice try, Zobelle" he states. "Trying to turn us against each other..."

"It's called divide and conquer, Mr Kozik" gasps Zobelle.

"Not gonna work, even if I was interested in the money" Kozik advises as he begins to drag Zobelle up the hill. "I don't kill women and I especially don't hurt ones with pretty eyes..."

It remains silent for a while as they all struggle up the hill. They are about halfway up when Kozik calls up to Jade. "How's Tig? He gonna be all right?"

"I think he'll be fine, Mr Kozik; as long as he gets medical assistance pretty soon" she turns around to look back down the hill as the sound of the sirens gets louder. Kozik also turns around and watches as the vehicles all begin to pull up at the front of the Water Plant's entrance. Jade puts her hand over her eyes to block out the sunlight that had broken across the area; so she could see better. "I think there's an ambulance down there..." she advises.

Kozik drags Zobelle up to where Jade is standing and looks back again. "Yeah, looks like we need to get the fuck ... pardon my French ... the hell out of here before the cops start to search the surrounding area..."

Jade nods in agreement, and picks up the pace as she starts to head up the steepest part of the hill. Zobelle stubbornly pulls away from Kozik. "I can get up there on my own, Mr Kozik." he states. Kozik gives him a hard look, before silently indicating that Zobelle needed to climb ahead of him.

It goes quiet again between them as they struggle up the rest of the slope. Kozik looks up to notice that Jade has just reached the top where the road was. Jade had just turned around to check on the men following her and catches the glimpse of a figure behind Kozik. Kozik has an instant of puzzlement when he notices she suddenly begins to put her hand towards the gun at her side. He goes still when he suddenly feels the mouth of a gun on his own back. It is only later that he realises that Jade had been real fast at pulling out her holstered weapon.

Ethan Zobelle pauses when he notices that ahead of him, the young woman had a gun levelled at someone behind him. He turns around with hope; thinking that Mr Kozik had finally decided to take him up on his offer. He pauses as he notices that there was another figure standing just behind Kozik. The man had an automatic gun aimed straight at Kozik's back.

The man was maybe in his late fifties or early sixties. He had grey hair and a moustache and was quite tall. He wore non-descript clothing and the only thing that indicated he was the last of the mercenaries was the military-type jacket he wore over his clothing; and the gun he had in his hand. He was covered in dust, as if he had been lying in wait in the dirt.

He looks up at the young woman who has the gun aimed at him. He knew the only reason she hadn't shot at him yet was that the younger man who he now held hostage was between them. "Drop the gun, sweetheart. Or your man here gets one in the back..."

Jade only raises the gun a few inches higher in response, and her eyes narrow as if taking in the scene before her. Kozik looks up at Jade in concern; hoping that she wouldn't shoot and hit him first. He is the only one who notices her eyes suddenly widen and a look of recognition crosses her face.

"Holt?" she suddenly asks; as if she knew the man who was holding Kozik at gunpoint.

Zobelle notices the man's look of surprise. "I know you?" he asks, as he narrows his eyes as if to see her better. Shock shows across his face when he notices the colour of her eyes.

Jade doesn't lower the gun as she responds. "I'm Jade..." she responds with an anxious tone.

The man called Holt seems stunned for a moment, but is professional enough to not to move his own gun away from his temporary shield. "Jade? Little Jade De-Storm?" he whispers in astonishment. It is quiet enough between them for Jade to hear him and she nods in response.

"Kill them both" Zobelle interrupts the stunned silence as he looks between the two men and where the young woman looked down at them. He takes a step back so the last mercenary has a clear shot of the woman. "I'll pay you everything I was going to give to the others. Finish them both now..."

"Shut up." It takes a moment before Kozik realises that both Jade and Holt had spoken at the same time. Zobelle is clever enough to keep his mouth shut as he looks between the two of them and notices the tension in the air. They both still had their guns pointed at each other.

"Walk away" Jade suddenly beseeches the old man. "You could just walk away..."

"Can't do that, sweetheart..." Holt responds with a resigned tone. He suddenly reaches forward and pulls out the handgun from Kozik's back belt with his left hand. He notices that the safety is on, and throws it to the ground. He takes a step away from Kozik so that he now had a clear shot between both him and Jade.

Jade had moved her gun to follow the mercenary's movement with her finger still on the trigger. "Please don't make me do this, Holt..." she pleads.

Holt offers her a sad grin. "Need the money, babe. Can't walk away from this one. Real sorry..."

They both move at the same time. Jade is faster and she shoots him accurately in the chest; before dropping to the ground to avoid any bullets flying her way. The old man is slower but still manages to trigger his automatic. As he falls to the ground behind him, his gun is raised in an arch and bullets fly everywhere before the gun slips from his hand. Kozik had dived to the ground as soon as Jade had taken the shot. The action saves his life, as the hail of bullets cross narrowly over his own head.

It goes deathly quiet, until Jade suddenly stands up and begins to rush back down the hill with the gun still in her hand. Kozik quickly gets back to his feet, and warily follows her. Jade drops to the ground beside Holt. The man is lying on his back, and his chest is covered in blood. His eyes are glazed as he looks up at the woman who had killed him.

"Little Jade; all grown up now" he whispers "Used to bounce you on my knee when you were a baby and you called me Uncle Holtie..."

Jade reaches for one of his hands and takes it tightly in her own. She had enough medical knowledge to know he didn't have long left. "You were always my favourite Uncle..."

The old man smiles up at her as he squeezes her hand. "Only 'cause I brought a gift for you every time I visited your grandpa's place..."

"I'm sorry..." she apologises; trying her best to hold back the tears.

"Not your fault, honey" advises Holt. "On my way out. Cancer. Only had a few months left..."

"Oh god..." Jade chokes.

"Not to blame yourself, you hear? Better this way" he gasps. "Always was a selfish bastard. Wanted the money to go out with a bang..." Holt closes his eyes and takes his last breath.

Jade stays still with his hand in hers for several seconds. She jumps when she feels at a tap on her shoulder. She turns around to Kozik who was leaning over her. "You okay?" he asks.

Jade takes a deep breath as she drops Holt's hand beside him. She couldn't hide the awkward look on her face that Kozik had been witness to a very personal moment. He silently offers out his hand with a sympathetic look on his face; and helps her to her feet.

For a moment, Kozik holds onto her hands and looks down at her with a concerned look on his face. He tries to catch her eye, as if to tell her he understood. But she pulls her gaze away from him as well as her hands. Kozik got the impression she was trying not to show that she was distraught; and he can see that it takes an effort for her to change her face to her normal cool and calm composure.

"Shit, Zobelle!" Kozik suddenly exclaims as he suddenly remembers their prisoner. He turns around and at first cannot see any sign of Zobelle, and even looks up at the top of the summit to locate him. It is Jade who notices where he was located, as she steps up beside Kozik and points her finger.

Kozik walks forward to where Zobelle was lying face down amongst some bushes. He leans down to turn the man over, but hastily takes a step back as he first sees the blood. Ethan Zobelle was dead; a stray bullet from the Mercenary's gun had smashed into his nose and up into his skull. His eyes were open and stared sightlessly at the sky. Kozik reaches forward and closes them with the palm of his hand; before he straightens up and wipes his hand on his jacket.

"Jesus! Clay is going to be fucking pissed..." exclaims Kozik.

"It was an accident and not your fault" states Jade. "Maybe it was for the best..."

Kozik runs his other hand through his hair in thought. "Yeah, I guess. Poetic justice – shot dead by one of the mercs he hired..." He turns around to see that Jade is looking down the hill to the Water Plant below them. He steps forward to join her; he wasn't sure at first what she was looking at.

"I don't think they heard the shots" she explains to him. "Or they'd be sending people up here."

Kozik takes a closer look at the activity below. He can see that there are a lot of uniforms walking in and out of the front entrance, but so far nobody was heading towards the back-fence. "Yeah, maybe we ought to split while we can..."

"What about the bodies?" she asks.

"It's unlikely they'll be sending anybody up here if they didn't hear the shots. If we left them where they are; they probably wouldn't ever be found. I'll get a couple of the guys to come back with me in a few days when things quieten down. We'll bury them deep..." Kozik muses to himself.

Jade stays quiet, and Kozik steels a glance at her. He notices she looks tired and has a far-away look in her eyes. "Look, why don't you head up to the truck? I'll see what I can do about hiding the bodies for now..." he suggests.

He was expecting Jade to argue with him, but instead she just nods and turns around. She notices Kozik's gun on the ground and picks it up and silently hands it to him and then heads back up the slope. Kozik feels concerned when he notices she had deliberately kept her face turned away from him. He had a real bad feeling that having to kill the man she had known had deeply distressed her.

When he returns to the truck twenty minutes later, she is sitting quietly in the passenger seat with a pair of sunglasses on that she had pulled from her rucksack. He silently gets into the driver's seat, but pauses before turning the engine over.

"You okay, Jade?" he asks softly.

She turns her head to look at him, but with the sunglasses on he couldn't accurately gauge how she was feeling or if she was still troubled. "I'm fine" she states.

"I'm sorry..." adds Kozik as he turns over the engine and starts to turn the pick-up around on the road. "About the guy back there being your friend. He said he was your Uncle?"

"He wasn't a friend or relative" Jade instantly responds with a hard tone to her voice.

"Yeah, but you knew him..." begins Kozik. He pauses as he realises that he probably shouldn't have said anything further.

"I'd rather not talk about it, Mr Kozik" she interrupts.

It is silent for a while between them as Kozik heads along the back-road. He feels uncomfortable at the quiet between them. "You dating anyone?" he suddenly finds himself asking. He peers across at her to see that despite the sunglasses covering her eyes she was surprised at his question. "Got a boyfriend? Anyone steady?"

"You asking me out on a date, Mr Kozik?" she asks.

"Yeah" he beams at her "and it's just Kozik. No Mister..."

He can hear her sigh in frustration to herself but she does not reply. Kozik took it as a negative response but still grins at her. He started to see why Tig liked her; definitely a challenge...

Visiting Hours

It was early Sunday morning at St Thomas's Hospital and over twenty-four hours since the club had finally gained their freedom. She had just checked in to get an update on Tig's condition from the main reception; when she turns around and sees Gemma and Clay walking down the corridor towards her.

Clay is carrying a holdall and has his other arm is possessively around Gemma as they walk up towards her. Tara notices that Gemma looks unsettled. She was not to know that Clay had been very protective of his wife since they had been reunited. He had followed her around like a lost puppy when they had finally gotten home on Saturday.

Even this morning he had insisted he drive his wife to St Thomas's when she said she was going to check up on Tig. Gemma hadn't argued; she understood that Clay didn't like to let her out of his sight since she had been kidnapped. She knew that eventually things would get back to normal; but Clay would be watching out for her like a hawk for a while.

"Morning, Doc" greets Clay as he and Gemma stop before Tara. "You and the kids recovered yet?"

Clay had been angry that after the initial re-union between the club families at the police station, that the ATF and State Police had wanted to speak to all of them individually for their statements. He got the impression that the ATF agent had used the opportunity to interrogate all of his brothers. He was pretty sure that they had all been kept longer than necessary; and it had taken a threat of their lawyers before they were all eventually allowed to leave. It had been late Saturday before any of them got home. He hadn't had a chance to check up on Tara and his grandkids.

"We're all okay, thanks, Clay" responds Tara "I'm just finishing up some notes; and then I'm going back home..."

"You left Jax on his own with the boys?" asks Gemma.

Tara and Gemma swap a smile at the thought of Jax having to deal with his very active children. "I know. If I leave him too long they'll be playing him up. Last time he spent the afternoon with them alone, I found Abel drawing all over the dining room walls..."

"I'll drop you back before I head towards the club..." volunteers Clay.

"It's not necessary, Clay..." begins Tara.

"He's not taking no for an answer right now..." interrupts Gemma in exasperation.

"I'll get one of the prospects to pick up your car and drop it back to your house..." adds Clay.

Gemma digs him in the ribs with her elbow. "Over-protective oaf..." she mumbles to himself. Tara looks surprised, and then notices the grin on Clay's face in response. She recalls that Jax had been just as clingy with her and the kids. He had initially insisted that she get one of the prospects to bring her to the Hospital so she could finish up some work; but instead of hanging around to wait she had snuck out when he was busy with the kids.

"How's Tig?" Gemma asks.

"He'll be fine; he just needs to take some time to recuperate..." advises Tara.

"What was causing him that pain?" asks Clay.

"Pneumothorax" she automatically responds. She then notices the puzzled look on both Gemma's and Clays faces. "Trapped air on the lungs caused by one of his broken ribs. He had a minor operation early this morning under local anaesthetic to relieve the pressure. He needs to rest for the next few days and he'll be on pain-killers for a few weeks until his ribs start to mend."

"But he's gonna be okay?" asks Gemma in concern.

"He's going to be uncomfortable for a while until the bruises and abrasions start to heal. His Doctor's very good; she's keeping him in for 48-hours observation in case there are any more complications. But so far he's responding well to treatment..." Tara responds.

"He's going to be upset if he misses the breakfast at the club tomorrow" Gemma states as she turns back to Clay.

"He just likes your pancakes..." smiles Clay as he bends down to Gemma and kisses her on the mouth. "So do I..."

Gemma pulls away in annoyance and turns towards Tara and notices the awkward look on the younger woman's face. "You able to make it tomorrow?" she asks; as if to change the subject.

"I'm taking a few personal days to spend some time with Jax and the kids; we'll be there" Tara responds as she turns back to the nearby desk and picks up her handbag. "Anything I can do to help tomorrow?" she asks Gemma.

"No, I've got it covered..." responds Gemma as she looks back up at Clay. "Clay's giving everyone the day off even though it's Monday; Dog and Chibbs volunteered to cover the garage. So after the breakfast everyone has the rest of the day to themselves."

"Just bring yourself and the family" interrupts Clay. He reaches down to kiss Gemma again before he lets her go. "Ring me when you're done, hun. I'll get one of the boys to pick you up." He turns back to Tara and notices the exasperated look the two women exchange. "I'll wait downstairs for you, Tara." He gives the holdall to Gemma, before turning around and saunters towards the nearby lifts.

"He's getting to be an old fusspot" exclaims Gemma in exasperation as she turns back towards Tara.

"Didn't he want to visit Tig?" asks Tara in curiosity.

"He came up here late last night; after he got Juice to come over to "keep an eye on me". I think he was more concerned about Tig than he let on. Didn't get back till the early hours..."

It goes quiet between them for a moment. "How are you handling all this, Gemma?" asks Tara.

Gemma smiles at Tara. "I don't think what happened has kicked in yet. One thing I do know though; is what's important. Like family". She abruptly leans forward and Tara finds herself in a hug. She hugs her back. "I love you and the kids, Tara..." exclaims Gemma as she pulls back. "Whatever happens in the future, you know that?"

Tara looks like she is going to choke up for a moment. She and Gemma had become very close whilst their husbands were in prison. But since the crew had been released, there had been a growing distance between them. "I know, Gemma. I feel the same..."

Recuperation

Tig was bored. Bored and uncomfortable. Although the Doctor had put him on some strong painkillers, he'd had trouble sleeping the previous night. The only good thing that had come out of being in Hospital was that the Doctor had insisted the ATF come back to take his statement another day. What he really wanted to do was split as soon as he could; he hated Hospitals.

He flicks through the remote control to try and find something to watch on the TV on the wall; but his mind really wasn't concentrating. He finds himself wandering what had happened after he had been carted away in an ambulance from the Water Plant. Clay had come to see him late last night and had updated him as much as he could. But his boss hadn't heard anything yet from Kozik. Tig wanted to know if Jade had got home okay; although he hadn't mentioned this directly to Clay.

He switches off the TV as he realises that there wasn't anything worth watching, just as the door to his room opens. Gemma walks in with a smile on her face and a holdall in her hands.

"Morning, Gem..." greets Tig as he returns her smile.

Gemma drops the holdall onto the tray over Tig's bed but peers at him in anxiety. Most of his face was now showing discoloration from his bruises and he looked like a red, yellow and black patchwork quilt. His smile comes out as a grimace. She gently bends down to offer Tig a kiss on a spot that looked it was a normal colour; just above his nose. He seems surprised but returns the kiss, but winces when she hugs him. She pulls back with a concerned look. "Sorry, Tig..."

"Okay, Gemma" responds Tig as Gemma pulls up a chair to sit beside his bed. "Still a little sore..."

"So how's our hero this morning?" Gemma asks.

"Hero?" queries Tig.

"Hero of the hour. That's what the boys are calling you..." she responds. "You saved all of the women and kids, plus all the guys..."

"Just doing my job, Gem..." responds Tig in embarrassment. Gemma grins at him and it suddenly dawns on Tig that she was enjoying his discomfort. "Wasn't down to just me. Kozik was there too..."

"Yeah, but you're the one that took a nasty beating from those ass-holes. How you really feeling now?" she asks.

"Fine, doll. Looks worse than it feels..." responds Tig as he begins to open the holdall in front of him in curiosity. "What you brought me?" he asks.

"I picked up some toiletries and clean clothes from your place..." Gemma responds. "There's also a new cell in the side pocket. Jax has got your knife till you get out of here."

Tig suddenly sniffs in the bag as if he smells something; and raises his head in query.

"Some of my meatloaf" she advises.

Tig grins as he pulls out a large slab of meatloaf in foil. "Brill, Gem! Food's lousy in here..." he states as he puts the food to one side to eat later. "I missed your cooking when we were all in the Can..."

"I'll bring some pancakes later tomorrow morning as well" adds Gemma.

It dawns on Tig why Gemma was bringing him in some more food. "Shit! You're having a breakfast without me?"

"Tara said you'll be in here for at least another day..." states Gemma.

"Not if I can help it..." interrupts Tig in annoyance.

Gemma shakes her head in exasperation. "For once, you're going to do what you're told. Tara said you should stay in her, so you do exactly that. No arguments..."

"Yes, mom!" Tig grins at Gemma.

Gemma sighs and rolls her eyes to the ceiling. "What am I gonna do with you, Tig? You don't listen to a word I say..."

Tig frowns as he recalls the last time he had seen her; at the house they had been held kept captive in. "You still pissed at me, Gemma? 'Cause I was only doing the right thing. Clay would have killed me if I had let you come with me and Jade..."

"So, its "Jade" now is it? Getting real friendly with that woman, aren't you Tig?" she pauses as she sees Tig lose the grin on his face and notices the closed look replace it. "I'm not angry at you Tig; just concerned. We don't know anything about that woman..."

"If she was just a crow-eater you wouldn't say a damn word against her..." interrupts Tig in irritation.

Gemma opens her mouth to start arguing with Tig, but pauses when she sees the look in Tig's eyes. It worried her that Tig seemed very defensive of the woman he had only met a few weeks ago. Then again, Clay had just as been tight-lipped when she had asked him for more details of the woman's involvement in the crew's rescue. She decides it was not the best time to continue the discussion with Tig. She'd speak to Jax later and get some answers from her son.

"I still don't like the fact that she ended up rescuing us all, Tig..." Gemma can't help but answer.

Tig leans back into the bed as if he was suddenly tired. "Give it a rest, Gemma. She got involved because of Opie's little girl. That's all."

Before Gemma can continue her conversation with Tig, they both pause as they hear loud voices from the corridor. The door opens, and Juice pops his head around as if checking Tig was awake. "This where our "Hero" is resting?" he asks, with a cheeky grin on his face.

Juice is abruptly pushed from behind. Chibbs, Happy, Bobby and Piney all pile into the room behind him. Chibbs is carrying a large basket of fruit in his hands. They all start to talk to him at once as they surround Tig's bed.

"Hey, man!" exclaims Chibbs.

"Glad to see you're okay!" states Bobby.

"Nice room..." adds Juice as he looks around.

"Morning, Gemma..." greets Piney to Gemma.

"You got any hot nurses looking after you?" asks Happy.

"Okay, guys!" grins Tig in greeting. "Keep the noise down, will ya? Or they'll chuck you all out..."

"I think that's my cue to leave..." advises Gemma as she gets up off her chair and offers it to Piney. Piney takes the seat in gratitude. She then looks back towards Tig before opening the door to leave. "We still need to have a talk about that woman, Tig. I'll come see you this evening..."

Happy and Juice swap a glance after she has left, and then both look back to Tig. He shrugs his shoulders as if it isn't there business, but winces as he pulls one of the bruises across his shoulder.

"So, c'mon, Tig. You gonna tell us how you ended up with Miss Hottie along for the ride; when you came to our rescue?" asks Happy.

"Aye, laddie. That's one tale I'd like to hear..." adds Chibbs. He moves the holdall from his bed-tray onto the floor, and puts the basket of fruit in front of Tig.

"Long story" states Tig. It goes quiet for a moment, and Bobby and Piney swap a look when they both realise it was all Tig was going to tell them. "You brought me fruit?" he asks Chibbs in irritation. He was also trying to change the subject.

"Not just fruit. Look in the basket" grins Juice.

Tig reaches forward and catches the glimpse of the label from a bottle of whisky underneath the fruit in the basket. "Appreciated, guys..." he exclaims with the grin back on his face.

Just at the moment the door opens again, and Kozik sticks his head in. He looks disappointed for a moment that Tig had company; and then beams at the group around the bed. He then walks into the room and nods to Tig in greeting. "Morning, Tig. How you feeling?" he asks.

"Better..." Tig confirms.

"I bet he wishes a certain Nurse Jade was looking after him" grins Chibbs. He misses the annoyed look that briefly crosses Tig's face. Kozik silently leans himself up against the nearby wall.

The door opens again and a Matron walks in. She looks taken aback to see so many men in the room. "I'm afraid you're only allowed three visitors at a time, Mr Trager..." she advises. She walks over to check on Tig's chart.

It goes silent amongst the men for a moment, until Piney wearily gets up from his chair. "Well, I guess we should leave you to get some rest" he advises. The Matron puts the chart back and looks around the room again as it making a point. "After you, doll..." Piney says as he opens the door for the older woman. She looks taken aback at being called "doll" but realises it was best to exit with dignity. She leads the way, as Piney follows her. Bobby and Juice also follow closely behind; leaving Kozik, Chibbs and Happy in the room with Tig.

"Okay, what's up?" asks Tig as he glances between Chibbs and Happy.

Chibbs smiles when he realises Tig was always on the ball. "Clay sent us up here to check on the security for the mercs..."

"Two of them are still here in the Hospital. Clay wants to see if we can..." Happy coughs "...go pay them a personal visit..."

"So you didn't just come to see me?" asks Tig.

"Och, Tiggy. We woulda come just to see how you were doing, but Clay thought it would kill two birds..." adds Chibbs.

"They have a man in each room as well as in the corridor. ATF aren't taking any chances with their prisoners. Apparently securities been pretty lax round here lately..." states Tig. Happy and Chibbs swap a bemused glance that Tig had already done some ground work for them. "I got restless and went for a walk-about last night..." he explains further.

Chibbs and Happy swap an amused glance as they both begin to walk out. Kozik straightens up from his position against the wall, as if to follow them. He pauses as Tig asks "Need a word, Kozik?"

Tig waits until the door closes behind Chibbs and Happy; whilst Kozik then leans back up against the wall. "You make sure Jade got home okay?" asks Tig.

"Sure, Tig. Well, at least to her pick-up. I dropped her back there..." responds Kozik. Tig picks up on the fact that Kozik won't look him in the eye.

"Okay, what's up?" he asks. Kozik gives him a wary look. "You are so bloody easy to read. Sit down and tell me what happened..."

Kozik silently moves to sit in the vacant chair; but still won't meet Tig's stare. "I think she was upset..." begins Kozik as he finds himself staring at the floor.

"What the fuck did you do!" interrupts Tig; assuming Kozik had made some sort of play for Jade.

Kozik peers up at him with an incensed look. "Hey, it wasn't my fault!"

"If you did or said something inappropriate to her, Kozik, I'll beat up your dumb-blonde ass..." Tig looks angrily at his colleague.

"I didn't do anything to her! You gotta believe me, man. I think she was upset 'cause she had to shoot that bloody mercenary. Turned out she knew him..." Kozik goes quiet as he notices the brief look of surprise on Tig's face.

Tig's voice is cold and angry as he responds. "Kozik, you better fucking start from the beginning. You tell me exactly what happened..."

Happy Families

Opie Winston has just got dressed after taking a long shower. He had woken up later than usual after a restless night; and he had only finally drifted off to sleep earlier that morning as he had mulled over what his daughter had told him about the events of the previous days. He knew the tiredness was a result of the stress and worry. Lyla had been just as restless, due the pain from the bruise on her face. She had eventually taken some strong painkillers and had been late to get up as well; but had woken up before her husband.

Opie starts heading towards the kitchen for breakfast when he pauses for a moment in surprise, as he suddenly smells something. The aroma reminds him of when Donna used to do her weekly baking; and for a moment it brings back a host of memories. Lyla wasn't much of a cook, and he vaguely wonders who was cooking in the kitchen.

He arrives in the kitchen to find it is already busy. Lyla was making a fresh cup of coffee for him. For a moment Opie is glad to see his family in a normal and homely routine. However, he is surprised to see that Ellie appears to be stirring a mixture in a bowl. Kenny is sitting at the end of the counter and appears to be drawing. There are several plates of cookies already cooling on the counter.

"Morning, hun..." greets Lyla as she walks up to him and offers him the coffee. She reaches up to kiss him and he returns the kiss before taking the cup from her. "Thought you'd never wake up..."

"More tired than I thought..." he responds as Lyla returns to the counter to grab herself another coffee.

"Something smells nice..." Opie says as he starts to reach for one of the cookies.

"Daddy! That's not for you!" exclaims Ellie. Opie pauses in complete surprise; a bemused expression on his face.

"Don't I get a taste, sweetheart?" he asks.

Ellie looks up from where she is adding flour to the mixture in her bowl. Opie is further taken by surprise at the exasperated look on her face. "I'm making some more for you and Kenny now, daddy. You have to wait till I finish baking..." responds Ellie.

Opie swaps a glance with Lyla, who smiles at him. He got the distinct impression Lyla found something amusing. "Who's getting these then, Ellie?" he asks.

Ellie points with the large wooden spoon in her hand to both batches of cookies. "Those are for Miss Jade and the others are for Uncle Tig..." she responds.

"I'll make you some eggs on toast..." volunteers Lyla who was trying her best not to laugh. She moves to the fridge to start taking out some eggs.

Opie steps up to stand next to Ellie as an amused grin also covers his face. "I didn't know you could cook, honey..." he states.

"Of course not, daddy. Men don't cook. So Nana's been showing me. And I found mummy's old recipe book" responds Ellie as she busily goes back to stirring the mixture in the bowl.

Opie looks across to his son, who offers him a grin.

"Have you finished that card yet, Kenny?" Ellie suddenly asks her brother. Opie finds himself trying not to laugh at the bossy tone to her voice. He ends up spluttering into his coffee.

"Just got to put some more glitter on, Ellie..." responds Kenny.

Lyla and Opie swap another glance at the way Kenny had responded. It was as if Kenny was resigned to his sister telling him what to do. "What card?" asks Opie to his son in curiosity.

"It's a thank you card, dad. Because..." he looks back to Ellie as if not sure what else to say.

"It's a 'thank-you card' because she saved your life..." explains Ellie.

"It's for Aunt Jade..." he continues explaining to his father. "Ellie's making me draw one from both of us..."

"It's "Miss" Jade, Kenny. She doesn't have any family..." interrupts Ellie.

Opie couldn't help himself. He knew that usually he was a very quiet man around his family and a lot of people thought he was reserved with his children. But partly in relief and partly because he loved his kids; he bursts into roars of laughter. He finds himself ending up hugging both his children as he laughs so hard it brings tears to his eyes...

Catching Up

"You mean you haven't told Clay yet about Zobelle?" splutters Tig in astonishment.

"I haven't had a chance, Tig. I don't have his new cell number. They were all at the police station for ages; and when I eventually got to his house last night he'd already left. I missed him this morning, too. Shit! He's gonna be so fucking pissed with me..." explains Kozik.

Tig picks up on the tone of Kozik's voice and suddenly realises that Kozik was feeling very sorry for himself. He leans back against the pillows on his bed as he tries to think things through. "Okay, I'll give him the bad news. Gemma brought me a new cell, and Clay's new number should be on it..."

"You sure?" asks Kozik with a look of relief on his face.

"He won't be mad at me, Kozik. I'm not the one who had Zobelle in his care. Just make sure you get those bodies dealt with quickly, and I'll explain to Clay what happened" responds Tig.

"Thanks, man..." Kozik replies. He pauses as he notices the calculating look in Tig's eyes. "Okay, what's this gonna cost me?" he asks in irritation.

"Need to get outta here this afternoon. I can sneak out myself; but I'll need transport..." advises Tig.

"You sure about that, Tiggy? You still look pretty beat-up to me..." states Kozik.

"Jesus, don't you start fussing too! I'll be fine as long as I don't have to do anything strenuous" responds Tig. "Which means I can't ride my bike at least till tomorrow..."

"I'll give you a lift..." volunteers Kozik.

"If you suggest me riding Bitch; then you can deal with Clay on your own..." warns Tig.

"Shit no! I meant I'll pick you up this afternoon in one of the vans..." responds Kozik. "Just let me know what time..."

"No. Get Phil to collect me at Two o'clock at the service entrance" argues Tig. "He knows when to keep his mouth shut. Not sure what time I'll be finished, so I'll ring him when I'm ready to be picked up..."

"Jesus, Tig. What you up to?" asks Kozik.

"My new cell's in the bag" Tig nods towards where the holdall is still on the floor. "Get if for me, would you?" he asks; ignoring Kozik's question.

Kozik gets up off the chair and it takes a few moments before he locates the cell, which he then places on the tray across Tig's bed. There is a thoughtful look on his face. "You're gonna go check up on her, aren't you?" asks Kozik softly.

"None of your fucking business" responds Tig sharply.

"Look, Tig. I can't be sure she was really upset or not; I was only telling you what I thought..."

"Yeah, well, keep your thoughts to yourself. What really happened stays between us, you understand?" Tig glares up at Kozik. "As far as Clay, Jax and the others know, you shot the mercenary yourself. Zobelle got killed by accident; that part doesn't change. Jade wasn't directly involved, you got that?"

"Sure, Tig" agrees Kozik. He knew that he owed Tig for taking some of the heat away from him. "I'm not stupid. The others don't need to know she knew the bastard..."

"Now, you'd best get outta here so I can call Clay..." adds Tig as he picks up the phone. "I suggest you go back to visit your mum for a few more days once the bodies are dealt with. That way if Clay get's pissed; you'll be out of range..." The thought also crossed his mind that it wouldn't be a bad idea to get Kozik out of the way for a while; he didn't like the way his ex-best friend seemed to be getting friendly with Jade.

Kozik heads toward the door as if to leave with a look of relief on his face; totally oblivious to Tig's real reason for suggesting he go visit his mother. He pauses as Tig speaks to him again. "And Kozik; one more thing..." Tig begins. Kozik briefly turns back around with a query on his face. "You ever ask Jade for a date again, I'll bury you alive right next to Zobelle's grave..."

Unexpected Caller

Filthy-Phil pulls up the van onto the driveway at Red Ferne House. Tig is sitting in the passenger seat, and as Phil finally stops the vehicle he pauses before getting out.

"I'll call you when I need picking up..." advises Tig to Phil.

"Sure" confirms Phil. "Anything else you want me to do?" he volunteers.

"Drop my holdall back to my place, would ya? And don't say anything to anyone..." warns Tig.

"Understood, Tig" confirms Phil.

Tig checks he has his cell on him and his painkillers in his pocket, before he opens the door and gingerly gets himself down from the van. His ribs didn't hurt so much this afternoon, but he was still feeling very sore. He closes the van's door and turns around and watches the van leave.

At first he looks around as if expecting Jade to appear, but it is quiet. Both the doors to the trailer and the house are closed. At first he thinks maybe she'd gone out, but then notices the pick-up is parked in its normal spot. He walks up the trailer, and knocks lightly on the door. There is no response, so he reaches forward to open the door but it is locked. He notices that the windows on the trailer all have the blinds closed; and for a moment has an eerie feeling that something is wrong.

He takes a step back from the door and looks around again. He notices that one of the blinds isn't quite closed, and walks up to the window. He has to stretch up on his toes to see through the gap at the bottom of the blind.

"Shit" he quietly exclaims to himself. Although it is dark in the interior of the trailer, he can see a sprawled figure across a bed in the corner. For a brief movement he has a cold fear in his gut that she was dead; but he notices Jade moving restlessly in her sleep as she lies face down on the sheets.

He stands back for a moment and is not sure what to do next. He wanted to pick the lock on the trailer to get in; but he didn't have his knife on him. He quickly heads towards where the pick-up was parked and hoped there was something in the back he could use as a picklock. Luckily, he notices a toolbox in the back and silently goes through it until he finds a small screwdriver.

Before he decides to attempt to get into the trailer; he makes one more attempt to wake her up. He knocks loudly on the door and shouts out "Jade? It's me – Tig!" When there is no reply again, he finally decides to pick the lock. It takes a few minutes to finally jimmy-open the door, and he quietly walks into the trailer. He looks around as it was the first time he had visited Jade's temporary home. He had only previously had a brief glimpse when he had been on stake-out with Kozik.

Although the trailer was crowded with her stuff, it was surprisingly tidy and neat. The door at the end of the trailer had about a metre of empty space behind it, which was piled high with boxes that Tig had previously noticed. Across to the other side was a half-opened door that must be the toilet and then another small compartment that had a plastic curtain hung across it (obviously a shower).

The rest of the walls had some cupboards and a tiny sink and only a microwave to cook with. A couple of stools were tucked under the small counter. Right at the other end of the trailer was what must have been a seating area but was at the moment being used as a bed. There was a fold-up table that was raised just before the sleep/seating area; where two bottles of drink were currently placed with a dirty glass.

He quietly steps up to watch were Jade was fast asleep; with her face down across the small bed and no cover over her. She is only wearing a long tee-shirt and shorts. Tig can't help but grin as he notices she had nice-looking and lithe legs. He notices there is a medium sized-scar behind one of her knees; possibly from a bullet or knife wound. It doesn't seem to mar the perfection of her legs and he finds himself admiring the fact that they were slim and athletic but not-too muscular. He ponders that most women would not want to cover those legs up with the casual jeans that Jade normally wore. He noticed her feet were bare.

Jade moves again in her sleep; and Tig's gaze moves up to her bottom. It was trim but curvy and Tig has to force his gaze away before he started to have very improper thoughts. He can see that under the tee-shirt she was not wearing a bra. He moves his gaze up to her blonde hair which was loose and created a halo around the back of her head. Her arms were sprawled across the pillow.

Tig silently steps forward to check on the bottles on the table. One was empty and the other one was half-full. He picks one up to read the label – Tequila. He puts the bottle back down as a thoughtful look crosses his face. He remembers the conversation they had had on their way down to the Water Plant and a frown crosses his face. He recalls her stating that she didn't drink – and yet, it was obvious she had gone through at least half a bottle of Tequila.

The thought also hits him that she must have passed out from drinking too much; otherwise she would have woken up by now. It also dawns on him that there must be a reason; most likely the events of Friday night and Saturday morning had finally gotten to her. Kozik's feeling that she had been distressed by having to kill the man she had known as a child had been right.

He puts the bottle of drink back on the table. "Oh, sweetheart..." he whispers to himself.

A Little Unwell...

Jade wakes up with a start. Tig had moved one of the garden chairs from outside, and had placed it at the end of the bed before making himself comfortable. The door had been left open to let in some fresh air. He puts down the week-old newspaper he had been reading that he had noticed in the trash. Jade moans and turns her head away from a beam of light which had come through a gap in the blinds above the bed.

"Afternoon, Jade..." Tig speaks softly.

Jade moves rapidly, despite her recent drinking binge. Her hand reaches quickly to underneath her pillow, but then pauses when she realises there was nothing there.

"Sorry" Tig apologises. "Didn't want you shooting me my mistake..." He had noticed the lump under the pillow as she had been sleeping, and had removed the gun. It now sat on the fold-away table with the gun clip taken out.

Jade pulls her hand over her head to clear away the long hair that is loosely trailing over her face. She then turns onto her back and peers across to Tig. Tig notices that around her neck she wore a silver chain. It held a gold ring and what looked like a piece of green jewellery.

Tig offers her a smile, even though he was concerned by the look on her face. For the first time since he had met her, she looked tired. There were dark circles under her eyes and she looked paler than normal. Her bloodshot eyes seem to take a moment to focus, which confirmed his suspicion that she was still hung-over.

"What..." Jade begins to say as she recognises Tig Trager.

"If you were going to have a party, doll, you should have invited me..." Tig grins as he looks back to where the table still held the two bottles of Tequila "Not much fun without company..."

He was expecting Jade to look annoyed or just plain pissed. He was not expecting her to suddenly put her hand to her mouth and jump out of the bed. She rushes past him and only just manages to open the door before she collapses onto the linoleum floor and then throws up in the toilet bowl.

Tig sighs to himself. He'd guessed right; she wasn't much of a drinker. Or she might have just downed most of the bottle and a half of Tequila - which would have made anybody sick. He slowly gets to his feet and walks up to stand over her. She had her head leaning up against the wall in the small cubicle for a moment; as if taking a breather.

"Anything I can do, hun?" Tig asks as he leans over her in concern.

"Go away..." she exclaims hoarsely. She puts her head back over the toilet and is violently sick again.

Jade continues to retch until she finally can't bring anything else up. She leans back up against the toilet's wall and takes several deep breaths as if trying to get herself under control. She closes her eyes for a few minutes, but opens them when she hears the sound of her kettle boiling in the kitchen. She can hear Tig moving around her kitchen area for a few seconds; with the sound of opening and closing cupboard doors. She looks up in surprise as he suddenly appears beside her by the door, with one of the mugs from her kitchen in his hand.

"Couldn't find any coffee..." explains Tig. He slowly lowers himself to the floor so he is sitting just outside the tiny bathroom. He offers her the mug.

"Hate the stuff..." she states softly. She takes the mug from Tig, and gingerly sniffs the contents. She then looks back at him with surprise on her face.

"Yeah, I noticed you got lots of different teas in your kitchen cupboard. Ginger's good for an upset stomach and a hangover" advises Tig. "I put some honey in for taste..."

She takes a sip and then pauses as she realises that it was a pretty good cup of tea; not too strong and just-off the boil. She waits to make sure she wasn't going to throw up again before she takes a longer sip. She then offers Tig a grateful look, and he looks taken aback.

He notices that her hair was still haphazardly hanging around her face, and finds himself automatically reaching forward to put the locks of hair around her ears. She goes still at his touch, and he is surprised that she had not flinched as she had previously done when he had gotten too close to her. He pulls his hand away with a touch of regret.

It goes quiet between them for a while as she takes another drink of the tea. "How did you know which tea to make me?" she suddenly asks.

Tig smiles at her. She always seemed to ask unexpected questions. "Shacked up with a Japanese girl for a few months..." he explains. "She was into all that 'healthy teas' stuff..."

"You surprise me, Mr Trager..." states Jade as she takes another sip. He raises his eyebrow in response. "Thought you were a 'love-em and leave-em' kind of guy?"

"You shouldn't make assumptions. It just goes to show you don't know much about me, Jade..." he responds. "If you gave me a chance, I could rectify that..."

She tilts her head to one side as she stares at him for a moment, as if not quite sure what to make of his comment. Tig looks back into her eyes and she looks away; he guessed she was embarrassed by his directness. Something seems to click into place, and it begins to dawn on Tig that Jade was very defensive when someone tried to get too up-close and personal.

"Why are you here?" Jade interrupts his thoughts.

"There you go again; changing the subject..." Tig can't himself from responding as he offers her a gentle smile. "... But in answer to your question; Kozik was worried about you."

"He told you what ... happened?" she responds in a troubled tone.

"Yeah; though I had to force it out of him. But as far as anyone else is concerned, the stuff about your Un... I mean, the merc you knew ... that stays between the three of us" he replies.

"Thank you" Jade's voice is so low Tig takes a moment to make sure he had heard her correctly. She looks at him for a moment and he notices the thoughtful look on her face. She takes another sip of her tea. "Kozik could have come see me himself, so I'm guessing there's something else?"

Tig looks surprised for a moment. "Yeah, Jade. I'd like to ask you something..." She stays quiet, and he realises that she was waiting for him to elaborate. "I'm not asking you out on a date, okay?" She nods in acknowledgement. "But I'd like to show you something. I was thinking I could pick you up tomorrow, say about eleven?"

She offers him a suspicious look and there is distrustful tone to her voice. "Show me what?"

"It's a surprise" he responds.

"Don't like surprises..." she automatically replies.

"Well, you'll just have to trust me, then" he advises.

"Not sure about that..." she responds. Tig is taken aback to note the cautious look on her face.

"Okay" he puts his hand up with his palm flat. "I promise as a member of SAMCRO that I'm not up to anything. I just want to show you somewhere, and I promise to bring you back home safely. You can set your own terms..." he grins as he puts down his arm.

Jade gives him a perplexed look. "What if I don't want to go?"

"You want me to beg?" He couldn't hide the disappointed look on his face.

Jade smiles in response, and it suddenly dawns on Tig that she was teasing him. "I don't know why I'm agreeing to any of this. But okay, Mr Trager..." she begins.

"Alex..." he interrupts.

"...Alex, I'll agree to your ... outing. On the condition that you tell me if anyone else is going to be there and where we're going..." she continues.

"No, just the two of us. I won't tell you where we're going until we're almost there. I promise to bring you straight back if you want to..." Tig advises. She doesn't respond at first, and he can see she was still thinking it over. "Deal?" he pleads.

Jade leans her head back up against the wall for a moment and he finds himself waiting in anticipation. "Do I have a choice?"

Tig laughs. "Nah, I'm a pretty determined guy..." he responds.

"Can I at least ask why you're doing this?" she asks.

"I ... like you, Jade. Where I want to show you ... it's kinda personal but I want to share it with you..." he finds himself responding.

Jade looks again surprised that Tig was being so forthright. "All right, eleven tomorrow?" she agrees with a sigh. She then goes quiet for a few minutes as she finishes the mug of tea.

"Want a top up?" asks Tig, as he uses the door as leverage to get himself back up onto his feet.

"No, I'm feeling better. Thank you..." Jade confirms as she looks up at him. Tig pauses a moment as a smell hits his nose; the scent of stale alcohol and vomit. He reaches down to take the mug from her outstretched hand; and tries not to grimace as he realises that Jade was the main cause of the smell.

"I hate to mention this, sweetheart; but I really think you need a shower..." Tig gingerly states.

Jade reaches up to flush the toilet before getting herself to her feet. "You're probably right..." she agrees as she suddenly looks a little green and unsteady on her feet. He reaches forward as if to steady her, but she pulls away from him. She heads towards where a towel was neatly folded up above one of the cupboards. She picks it up before turning around and realises Tig is standing between her and the shower.

"If you want me to scrub your back..." grins Tig, as if to break the awkward moment.

"Out!" she exclaims as she looks at him in exasperation.

"Okay, I'll wait out the front..." he agrees. He puts the mug in his hands onto the nearby table and then heads towards the door. He hears the door being locked behind him as he makes himself comfortable in one of the chairs by the nearest garden table.

Ellie Sent Me

Opie finds himself cursing at the state of the road he drives down towards Mrs Hunter's house. He knew the potholes were not doing the suspension on his pick-up any good. However, he suddenly goes quiet as he first recognises the figure sitting outside of the trailer that was set up just outside of the main house. He is so surprised that he almost forgets to slow down and stop his vehicle.

Tig stands up with his hand over his eyes to keep out of the sunlight. He is just as surprised to see that Opie is driving up to the front of the house. He briefly looks towards the trailer, to check if Jade had heard the engine-noise. As Opie switches off the engine, he can hear the faint sound of her shower and realises she probably did not know she had another visitor.

He watches as Opie gets out of the vehicle, with a large paper bag in his hands. Opie raises his eyebrow at Tig but the surprise stays on his face. Tig grins in return, when he realises that Opie was more uncomfortable at the situation than he was. Opie puts down the paper bag in his arms onto the nearby garden table. "Jade around?" he asks to break the awkward silence between them.

"Yeah, just taking a shower..." responds Tig. Opie can hear the sound of running water for himself and gives Tig a hard look.

"Better not be what I think it is, Tig..." responds Opie.

It suddenly dawns on Tig that Opie was making assumptions as to why he was here. He had never known Opie to interfere with any relationships between the men and women of the club. He especially did not make comments about other men's sexual affairs. "Shit no, man! Nothing like that. Just making a friendly visit..."

"How friendly?" asks Opie in concern. He had to admit to himself that he admired the woman who had saved his wife and children. He didn't like the thought of Tig trying to take advantage of her.

"Jesus, Opie..." responds Tig as he sits back down at the table as if to break the uncomfortable tension between them. "I know you guys think I'll screw anything that moves; but Jade's not like the crow-eaters at the club. I wouldn't treat her like that; even if she would let me. So don't get your trousers all in a twist, okay?"

Opie looks taken aback that Tig had been so forthright with him. "Just remember she's a friend of the club, Tig. That means you treat her with respect..."

He is further surprised as Tig grins up at him. "I'd be happy right now if she'd just consider me a friend, Op. She already has my utmost respect and admiration..."

"Hmmmm" comments Opie as he sits down on the other chair at the garden table.

It goes quiet between them for a moment. "So what you doing here, Opie?" asks Tig in curiosity.

He is surprised that Opie seems awkward at the question. "My daughter sent me..." he mumbles down towards the table and Tig only just catches what he says.

"Ellie sent you?" he repeats.

"Yeah" Opie states and then goes quiet.

"What for?" asks Tig.

"Didn't have a choice..." he exclaims when he realises that Tig wouldn't let the issue go. "She wanted to come here herself. But I persuaded her to stay home but had to promise to drop some stuff off for her this afternoon." Opie didn't mention to Tig that his daughter had virtually screamed the house down when her father had at first refused to take her to Jade's home; and in the end she'd only stopped crying when he'd promised to go himself.

Opie reaches into the paper bag that is placed between them and pulls out a plastic box full of cookies that had a label marked 'Uncle Tig' written on it. "She also wanted me to give you these; and said she hopes you feel better soon..." he admits with reluctance.

It suddenly dawns on Tig that Opie was very awkward at having to be Ellie's messenger. He takes the box and puts it down in front of him on the table. "She's a sweet kid. Tell her I said thanks..."

Opie goes quiet again, and Tig realises that he had paused because he had something else to say. "Ellie told me everything, Tig. Especially 'bout what that bastard threatened to do to her; when he was chasing her down. She was up till late last night telling me exactly what happened..."

"I'm real sorry 'bout that, Op..." interrupts Tig. Opie looks taken aback at the sincerity in Tig's voice. "If I hadn't come up with that plan she would never been put into danger in the first place..."

"You tried to get her and Kenny out of there, Tig. You weren't to know that the bastard liked young girls. I don't blame you for that. If anything, if Jade hadn't rescued Ellie we'd all be dead by now" responds Opie. He had been angry at first when his daughter had told him about Tig's plan and her role in it; but he had finally realised that Tig wasn't ultimately to blame. In fact, if anything, he was grateful that Tig had tried to look out for his family.

"Ellie's a tough kid; just like her dad" responds Tig. "If she'd been hurt I would have taken my time killing that Serbian bastard..."

"I caught up with Kozik earlier today" advises Opie. "He told me what you did to get our location out of the Serbian and where you left him. I plan to go check up on the prick once I'm done here..."

"Count me in..." volunteers Tig. He knew exactly what Opie had in mind for the man who had threatened his little girl.

Just at that moment, the door to the trailer opens and Jade steps down. She has a look of surprise on her face at her further visitor. She is now wearing her normal jeans, tee-shirt and boots but she has as towel in her hand as dries her hair. She pulls her hair back over her head and places the towel over her shoulder. "Mr Winston..." she nods towards Opie and offers him a smile. She had come to like the man who was Ellie's father; even though she didn't know him too well.

"Jade" Opie can't help but grin in response. Tig notices the smile across his colleagues face; and the look of appreciation as Jade walks towards where the two men were sitting. Jesus, did all of his friends also admire the woman he was in love with? He even had a feeling that Clay only got angry with Jade Hunter because he was embarrassed that he felt attracted towards her.

"Just call me Opie..." continues Opie Winston. He hears a nearby grunt from Tig and ignores it. He got the distinct impression that Tig wasn't happy at the way he had greeted the young woman.

Tig automatically gets up and moves the chair that was placed on the other garden table, and puts it at the table where he and Opie were sitting. Jade sits down with a grateful look towards Tig, as they continue to talk. Tig sits himself back at the table to join them.

"How are your wife and children?" asks Jade to Opie.

"They're all fine, Jade. I never got a chance yesterday to thank you for everything you did..." Opie pauses as he notices the slight flush in the woman's cheeks. It suddenly dawns on him that she was embarrassed as she looks away to one side. He also notices Tig watching in amusement.

"I think Ellie's the real heroine. She was very brave..." Jade responds.

"That's what I just said. Tough as her old man..." adds Tig; wanting in on the conversation.

"Going through something like that can be hard on a girl her age. She was absolutely terrified of that ba ... the Serbian and what he said he was going to do to her..." she continues.

"Yeah, she spent hours last night telling me all about it. She eventually cried herself to sleep..." Opie admits.

"I don't want you to think I'm interfering, but can I make a suggestion?" she suddenly asks.

Opie looks surprised and swaps a glance with Tig. "Sure, Jade..."

"I've met youngsters who have had a ... similar experience. Children can be pretty resilient; but it sometimes takes longer for a traumatic event like that to impact on them. Ellie might have seemed to have got through the last few days without any harm; but you may want to keep a close eye on her for a while?" she suggests.

"You think she might need professional help?" interrupts Opie. Actually, he hadn't thought of it himself but now that Jade had mentioned it he realised he needed to think the possibility over.

"I don't know" admits Jade. "I think talking to you about what happened might be enough. She ... told me that the Serbian threatened to hurt her, but wasn't very specific about what he said..."

"She was very specific last night. She repeated what he shouted out to her..." interrupts Opie. There is an angry note to his voice as he reflected on what the Serbian had promised to do to his daughter.

"Bastard!" mutters Tig under his breath.

"I don't think she understood most of what he said to her, thank God" muses Opie. "I think she was more afraid that he would return for her; rather than what she went through already..."

"Then as long as you can re-assure her that he won't be coming back, I think she might be all right..." assures Jade.

Tig and Opie swap another glance. "Prick won't be going anywhere. We're already on it, Jade" admits Tig.

She raises her eyebrow at him. "I'd rather not know, Mr Trager..." she admits.

It goes quiet between them for a few moments as they all silently reflect on what could have happened – not only to Ellie but all of the women and children, as well the men.

"Ellie wanted to come and say thank you for herself, Jade..." Opie advises; realising it was time to change the darker tone of their conversation. "But I think it best she stays at home for a few days; where she feels safe." He offers Jade another smile. "You know, I think you made quite a hit with her..." Opie pauses as he notices the further blush across her cheeks.

"Anyway..." he continues "... she insisted on returning the coat you lent her and wanted to give you a present." Opie pushes the bag across to her and his smile gets wider as he notices the flustered look across Jade's face. "I also want to say to that if you ever need anything from me, Jade; you only have to ask..." Opie finishes.

Jade reaches forward to the paper bag, but does not answer. Opie got the distinct impression that she was finding it difficult to find the words to express her response. She pulls out a box of cookies with the name "Miss Jade" scribbled across the box. "Cookies?" she asks in surprise and pleasure.

"Yeah, freshly baked this morning..." responds Opie.

"She's given some to me as well..." advises Tig. He didn't mention that Jade had got more cookies than him; he figured Ellie was a good kid just to include him in her gifts.

Jade then pulls out the hand-made card, which she opens up and silently reads that it is from both Ellie and Kenny. For a brief moment she closes her eyes, and it suddenly dawns on Opie and Tig that it was her way of trying to keep her emotions under control. The last item she pulls out is her military-style coat. It had been washed, ironed and then neatly folded into a clear plastic bag.

"She's a very sweet girl to think of me, Mr Winston..." Jade finally says. "Would you thank her for me? Kenny, too. Tell Ellie I especially appreciate the cookies..."

"Sure, Jade" grins Opie.

The silence that descends on them for a while is interrupted by Opie's cell ringing. He pulls it out of his pocket and opens up the phone. "Yeah?" he greets. He gets himself to his feet as he listens to his caller. "Sure, Gemma. Tomorrow morning? Kids would love a day off from school..." He exchanges a grin with Tig; but then raises his eyebrow as he listens to Gemma's response. "Tig? Thought he was still in Hospital?" he responds as he looks across to where his colleague sat.

Tig suddenly makes a cutting motion with his hand across his neck and vigorously shakes his head; as if to tell Opie that he was not to tell Gemma he was there. Opie just smirks at Tig in response. "He sneaked out? Sounds like Tig..." He looks down at Tig as if he was going to offer him the cell phone.

Tig shakes his head again and gives Opie a look of disgust. He knew his colleague was playing with him; and was enjoying every second of his discomfort.

"Yeah, sure. When I see him, I'll let him know you're looking for him..." Opie pauses at Gemma's reply. "He'll turn up, Gemma. You know him; won't miss a breakfast for anything. What time tomorrow? Okay, see you then..." Opie then puts the cell back into his pocket.

Jade had watched the interaction between the two club members; and found it hard to keep the amusement from her face.

"Gemma said..." begins Opie with a cheesy grin on his face.

"I heard..." interrupts Tig with an annoyed look.

"She's just worried you skipped out from the Hospital, Tig" advises Opie with a more serious tone to his voice.

Tig shakes his head in exasperation. "Anybody would think she's my fucking mother. Not that my real mother ever took any notice of me..." he mumbles to himself.

Opie laughs at Tig's response. He then stretches as he turns back to Jade who is silently watching the two men. "I mean it, Jade. You ever need anything. Anything at all..."

"I appreciate the offer, Mr ... Opie" she replies. "I'm just glad Ellie and your family didn't come to any permanent harm"

"See you around some time, Jade. Gotta get some errands done..." he responds as he starts to head towards his pick-up. He pauses when he realises that Tig had stayed seated at the table. He turns around and gives him a perplexed look. "I'll drop you back, Tig..." he suggests.

Tig grins at Jade as he leans back into the chair. "Fine right here, Op..." he responds.

Opie gives him a rigid look when he realises that Tig didn't want to leave. He looks across at Jade and notices she seems to be ill-at-ease. "I need a hand with our ... little problem, Tig. You said you'd help, remember? And I'm sure Jade has stuff to do..."

"Shit!" exclaims Tig as he reluctantly begins to get up from his chair, and picks up his box of cookies. Opie smiles as he realises that Tig really didn't want to leave; but he had forced his hand. He turns back around and starts to walk back towards his vehicle.

"Don't forget..." whispers Tig to Jade as he pauses at the table; hoping that Opie didn't hear. He got the impression that Opie was trying to run interference between him and Jade. He couldn't figure out if Opie was doing it because he liked her himself; or if he was just trying to pull Tig's chain.

He pauses as Jade looks up at him with a smile. "I know; eleven tomorrow..." she responds quietly.

Tig stays where he is as he looks down into her eyes; they were no longer bloodshot and she was looking better. For one long moment they stare at each other and he smiles back at her. He was very, very tempted to lean down and kiss her.

He jumps back when he hears the loud horn from Opie's pick-up. "Tig, get a move on!" shouts Opie. "Haven't got all bloody day, here!"

Vanished...

As Opie's pick-up approaches the abandoned garage, Tig swears under his breath as he first notices that the main door was already open. As Opie parks outside, he then sees that the garage was empty and the van had also disappeared.

They both get silently out of the pick-up, and walk towards where open garage door. The wind had started up, and a pile of leaves had already accumulated just inside the door.

"Shit!" swears Opie, as he stops before the door. He turns towards Tig as if wanting an explanation.

"We left the prick tied up to the chains and the door locked..." explains Tig as he steps up towards where the chains that had held the Serbian were hanging from the ceiling and swaying in the gust of wind. The door's lock had obviously been broken.

"Maybe Kozik moved him..." begins Opie, with a hopeful note in his voice.

"Nah, I told him I'd deal with the bastard and to leave him be..." advises Tig. He looks down to the floor and notices a small pool of dried blood just below the chains. "I think the prick got himself down; but he must have hurt himself doing it..."

"And you didn't think of taking the van with you?" asks Opie in irritation that the Serbian had obviously escaped. "Or on checking that he couldn't get away?"

"Sorry, Op" apologises Tig. "It was more important we get to you guys first. I really didn't think the bastard would get out of this. Nor that we'd have to come back and check-up on him..."

Opie sighs in frustration as Tig turns around to check the outside.

"He'll be long gone by now..." advises Tig, as he realises the pile of leaves meant that their prisoner must have escaped quite a while ago.

"Fuck!" Opie angrily swears as he heads back to his pick-up. He kicks the side of his vehicle in anger.

Club Breakfast

Gemma was in her element. It was the following morning, and the club-house was packed full as almost everybody had turned up to enjoy her breakfast. Only Kozik had rung to apologise that he wouldn't be able to make it as he was back at his mother's; but she'd promised to save him some of her meatloaf next time she made a batch.

The kids were running around in excitement as the adults gleefully tucked into the spread that was across the bar. Gemma looked around in contentment as she watched the club and her family. She found herself listening to some of the conversations amongst the group of people.

Chuckie was talking to Bobby. Chuckie had originally volunteered to cover the garage when he had heard that there was to be a breakfast that morning; but Gemma had persuaded Clay to completely shut-up-shop for the breakfast. That way, although Dog and Chibbs had said they would look after the business for the day, they could still come and enjoy the morning.

"You should have told me, Bobby" exclaims Chuckie. "I was worried sick when I turned up Saturday and it was only me and Dog..."

"Got kinda busy, man..." responds Bobbie. "The club appreciates you looking after things for us..."

"Please don't give me a fright like that again..." pleads Chuckie.

"I accept that..." responds Bobbie with a grin on his face.

Gemma notices that Clay and Jax are talking quietly but animatedly together; although they both found time to continue eating between their conversation.

"... So the prick's finally dead..." Jax was saying.

"Yeah, Happy and the prospects went with Kozik and dealt with the bodies last night..." Clay updates Jax. "Actually, I wouldn't have minded following your suggestion that we left his remains somewhere to be discovered. But right now it would bring down too much heat from the Feds..."

"As much as I would have liked to have kept my promise to that bastard, you're right. Plus Jade was an unavoidable witness; best to bury the whole thing with his body..." responds Jax in thought.

"Gotta admit, Jax. Damned women was the last person I expected to see come to our rescue..." grumbles Clay.

Gemma notices the sudden grin the two men exchange. She turns her attention away to where Chibbs and Juice were stuffing their faces with pancakes as they chatted.

"...Pretty. And Hot. And she can sure handle a gun..." Juice was saying with a wistful smile.

"Och, laddie. She'd never look at a youngster like you. She needs an older man..." responds Chibbs.

"Yeah, but at least I speak better English..." laughs Juice. "She'd need a translator to understand what you said to her..."

"At least I dinna pester her when she goes shopping..." retorts Chibbs sharply.

Gemma feels a brief moment of annoyance. She was not happy that the main topic of conversation seemed to be ... that woman again. Even when Opie had turned up with his family, Ellie had walked straight up to her and asked if "Miss Jade was coming?" Opie had looked embarrassed at the question, and had quietly told his daughter that she hadn't been invited.

Her thoughts are interrupted as Happy walks up to her with a grin on his face. His hands are full with a large pile of food on a plate. "Great breakfast, Queenie" Happy mumbles in between mouthfuls. "You've outdone yourself..."

Gemma smiles at him in return; and remembers she had meant to speak to Happy earlier about one of the people who had not turned up at the breakfast. "You seen Trudy around?" she asks.

Happy drops his smile for a moment. "She split, Gemma" he advises. She offers him a puzzled look. "Got a message on my voicemail yesterday. Apparently she felt Charming wasn't safe anymore and packed up and went to go see her sister in Seattle..."

"I'm sorry, Happy..." she advises. She shouldn't be surprised that the crow-eater had left after what had happened; but she was sorry for Happy who had been quite keen on her.

Happy smiles at her again. "No probs, Gemma. Not really my type. Prefer a woman with a bit of spunk. Blonde and green-eyed, preferably..." he states with a thoughtful look on his face.

He walks away and totally misses the further look of exasperation on Gemma's face.

"Okay, Gemma?" asks a female voice from behind her. She turns to see Tara, who was holding Abel in her arms.

"Sure, Tara" advises Gemma. The thought was at the back of her mind that she shouldn't let her irritation at that ... woman ... get to her and spoil the Club Breakfast.

Before they can continue their conversation, they are both distracted by the sound of clapping and cheering that was coming from the bar area.

Tig knew he was late to the Breakfast, and had sneaked in the back way. He had not expected that some of the boys had noticed his entrance and had hollered and shouted at him in recognition. As he sauntered towards where Clay and Jax were looking on, he found his back and shoulders being slapped more than once and can't help but wince. There were a few "sorry's" from some of the men, but most of them seemed especially glad to see him. Chuckie gives him an enthuastic wave as he briefly catches his eye.

It suddenly dawned on Tig that he was being thanked by his brothers for his actions over the last few days. Even Lyla gave him a smile, and usually she pretty-much ignored him.

"Tig" acknowledges Clay. "Thought you were meant to be resting..."

"Wouldn't miss Gem's breakfast..." he responds.

"Glad to see you, man" adds Jax as he also slaps Tig on the back. Tig winces again and gives Jax an irritated look.

"You're late" retorts a sharp female voice from behind him. Tig turns around as he realises that Gemma's tone of voice showed she was not exactly pleased with him right now.

"Sorry, Gem" apologies Tig as he turns around and hangs his head. "Took a load of pills last night and overslept..." He raises his head and offers her a hang-dog look.

"Come here, you stupid idiot" Gemma says as she reaches forward and gives him a hug. "I'm not worried about you missing the breakfast..."

"She got pissed 'cause you skipped-out at the Hospital..." finishes Clay.

"Let me get you something to eat before it all disappears..." she volunteers and turns back to the bar and begins to fill up a plate for him.

It goes comfortably quiet between Tig, Clay and Jax. Although the rest of the club were noisy as they started to dig into the food again for a second helping. Tig has to step out of the way as some of the kids start to run around again. He almost collides with Tara, who had walked up behind the men with Abel still in her arms.

"Your Doctor wasn't too pleased about you leaving early, Tig" Tara smiles at him. "She rang me and expects you to go back tomorrow for a further check-up."

Tig returns her smile. "Got it, sweetheart. Sorry it caused you any trouble..."

Tara shakes her head in exasperation and turns to her husband. "Jax, you need to make sure he goes for that check-up..."

Jax smiles at his wife, as he puts down his plate of food which he had finished. He reaches out and takes Abel from his wife's arms. "No problem, Tara. We'll get one of the prospects to drag him along..." he responds.

"Daddy! Daddy!" shouts out Abel as he points his finger towards the bar. "Panakes!" he shouts. The adults swap a smile at Abel's attempt to say 'pancakes'.

"C'mon, son. Let's go eat lots of "panakes"..." Jax says to his son. Abel shouts out in happiness as Jax picks him up and sits him across his shoulders as he carries him towards the bar.

"He's already had three" advises Tara as she shakes her head and she watches her step-son and husband together.

"Shit!" suddenly exclaims Chuckie from behind them. Clay turns around with an irritated look on his face. However, he notices that Chuckie is looking at the Survey cameras mounted on the wall. He and Tig turn around to take a look.

There are two black sedans pulling up at the front of the garage. Two men with black suits and dark shades get out of one of the vehicles, and start looking around at the empty courtyard.

"ATF? What the fuck do they want?" asks Bobby as he and some of the others move up to stand beside Clay.

Clay reluctantly puts down his plate of food, and exchanges a look with Bobby. They both head towards the entrance to the club, and Tig automatically begins to follow them. "Stay here, Tig" advises Clay as he notices. "This breakfast's partly in your honour; look after your guests..."

Tig comes to an abrupt halt and swaps a look of surprise and embarrassment with Chibbs and Juice.

In the meantime, Clay and Bobby come out from the club and saunter over the where one of the ATF men were standing in front of their vehicles. "The garage is shut for the morning" advises Clay. "Those dark glasses make you miss the sign posted out the front?"

The first ATF agent gives Clay an annoyed look over his sunglasses. "You're Clay Morrow?"

"That's the name my mother gave me" responds Clay with an irate tone. "You guys want something?"

"We're looking for a Mr Alexander Trager" advises the second ATF man as he moves up to join his colleague.

"What for?" asks Bobby. "Haven't you guys already taken up enough of our time the last few days?"

The two men swap a glance at Bobby's annoyed tone. "We need Mr Trager to come down to the local police station" advises the first ATF agent.

"What's the charge?" asks Clay.

"No charge. We need him to complete a statement as to the events of Friday night..." advises the second agent.

"Would have thought you had enough statements to fill a couple of filing cabinets by now..." interrupts Bobby.

"Jesus, the guys only just got out of Hospital. Can't you do this another time?" adds Clay.

"Is he here or not?" responds the second agent with an aggravated tone.

"It's okay, Clay" interrupts a voice from behind Clay and Bobby. They turn around to find Tig standing just behind him. He'd decided to find out what was going on and felt he needed to be there if there was any trouble. He'd also overheard most of the end of the conversation "Might as well get this out of the way..." he explains to Clay.

"You sure, Tig?" asks Clay. "We could get our legal representative to deal with this." He turns towards the two ATF agents "I might ask him to look into suing ATF for unnecessary harassment..."

Tig looks at his watch and notices it had just gone nine o'clock. "Won't take more than an hour or so, right?" he asks the first ATF man.

"We won't detain you longer than necessary, Mr Trager" confirms the agent. He turns around to start opening the back of one of the sedans.

"Anything we can do, Tig?" asks Bobby.

"Yeah, get one of the prospects to drop my bike off at the station for when I finish?" asks Tig as he steps towards the sedan.

"Sure, man" confirms Bobby.

Tig is just about to get in to the sedan when he hears a familiar voice from the entrance to the club. "Tig, wait up!" He turns around and Gemma rushes up to him. She passes him a large napkin that is folded up and bulging with food. "Take this with you..." she exclaims "... No need to miss out totally. You must be hungry..."

"Thanks, doll..." Tig smiles as he takes the napkin from her.

Gemma turns towards the two men with an irritated look on her face. "I want him back safe and sound" she instructs the two men. "He's still in recovery; so don't you give him any hassle!"

The two ATF agents swap a bewildered and bemused look. "Yes, ma'am" confirms the first agent.

Bobby and Clay swap a smile. It was very rare that anybody argued with Gemma.

Late

Jade Hunter stands outside her trailer; she is dressed in her normal jeans and tee-shirt and has her hair up in a ponytail. It was warm enough not to wear a coat or jacket; and sunny enough that she had her sunglasses on. She takes another look at her watch and a frown crosses her brow as she checks the time. It was now quarter past eleven; and she starts to feel frustrated. The thought begins to cross her mind that Alex Trager had pulled some sort of joke on her when he had asked her the previous day if he could take her out on his 'outing'. Maybe he had planned all-along to not turn up; and was enjoying the thought of playing her for a fool...

Her thoughts are interrupted by the faint sound of an engine. As the noise gets clearer, she realises it was the sound of a bike-throttle rather than a car. In fact, as the sound got louder she realised that the bike must have been going at quite a speed. Her assumption was proved right, as Tig Trager's Harley comes bombing down the track towards her driveway. However, the bike brakes in time before hitting the end garden wall and he pulls up just outside of her trailer.

Tig turns off the engine and pulls off his helmet; he puts it over one of handlebars. He finds himself putting his hand through this hair to tidy it up; but notices that Jade as looking at him with her eyebrow raised. "Sorry, babe..." he apologises. "ATF caught up with me this morning and wanted a statement. Took longer than I thought..."

"I thought maybe you'd changed your mind" she responds.

"Shit, no!" swears Tig. He couldn't hide the annoyed tone to his voice. "Those fucking agents took their own bloody time before they would let me go. Didn't have your number to let you know I'd be late..."

Tig picks up on the brief worried look that crosses her face. "What did they want to know?" she asks.

"No worries, Jade. I didn't mention your involvement. As far as those goons are concerned I escaped all on my own and it was me and Kozik who rescued our crew..." he explains.

"Thank you, Mr Trager..." she responds.

"What's with the Mr Trager stuff, Jade? I thought we'd gone through this. You need to start calling me Alex. Or Tig..." he grins at her.

She returns his smile and it goes quiet between them for a moment. Tig reaches forward and pulls out a spare helmet from the front of his Harley. He begins to offer the helmet out to her; but pauses when he notices her look of consternation.

"Couldn't we go in my pick-up?" she asks and it suddenly dawns on Tig that she seemed uncomfortable at the thought of riding on his bike as his passenger.

"Sorry, Jade" explains Tig. "Where I'm taking you is pretty hard to get to. You can't get there in a car; so it's either the bike or a real long march. I'm not up to that much walking right now..."

"Are you sure?" asks Jade as she pointedly looks at the bike; as if seeing how much room was behind him on the seat.

"Trust me, doll..." responds Tig. He finds himself smiling again at the look of disquiet on her face. "I promise you'll be perfectly safe..."

Jade seems to take a moment to think; but then sighs to herself. "You'll have to promise to keep your hands to yourself..." she states.

He raises his eyebrow at her. "Bit difficult to touch you up on a bike; if you're sitting behind me, sweetheart. Trust me, I've tried it. I need to concentrate to stay on the road..."

She shakes her head at him in exasperation. "Let me at least put on a jacket..." she responds and turns around to enter the trailer.

Road Trip

Tig's Harley pulls up in front of a wooden gate across the dirt road. They had turned off from a main road outside Charming a while ago; and the dusty road they had ended up on had made it difficult for them to talk.

He feels Jade remove her arms from around his waist as she automatically gets off the bike. When she had first sat behind him, she had originally just put her hands on his shoulders. Tig knew the road they were going to be on would be uneven and bumpy; and he had told her to put her arms around his waist.

At first she had tried to keep the distance between them; and he could feel that her body was stiff and tense against his. Eventually she seemed to loosen up and had held onto him with a more relaxed pose; he had got the impression she had tried not to hold on too tightly to avoid hurting his busted ribs. However, for the last five minutes she had seemed to mould herself onto his back; as if she had ridden as passenger on a bike a few times before – and was actually enjoying the ride. It had felt oddly comfortable to Tig; as if she belonged there. He had tried to ignore the warmth of her body against his and the resulting heat below his waist.

Jade notices that the gate that blocked the dirt track ahead had a sign on it. "Private Property?" she asks Tig as she takes off her helmet.

"It's okay, we've got permission to be here..." advises Tig.

Jade takes a quick look around as if orienteering herself. "Isn't this the local Indian Reservation?"

"Wahewa Land" confirms Tig. "They're friends of the club..."

He begins to get himself off the bike, but pauses as Jade responds. "I'll get the gate..." she volunteers.

It only takes a few minutes for her to open the latch and for Tig to get his bike through. However, after Jade closes the gate behind them she does not immediately get back on the bike. She walks up to stand beside Tig.

"You said you'd let me know where you're taking me, Mr ... Alex..." she asks.

Tig finds himself looking up ahead of them. Jade turns around and follows his gaze. She notices for the first time the hill that is in front of them. It was the highest point in the area and the top overlooked the surrounding district. The dirt track eventually led towards the top; but was not wide enough for a normal vehicle to pass.

"We're going up there?" she asks with surprise in her tone.

"Yeah, that's why we needed to come on my bike. The Wahewa's have a name for the place at the top; but I would never be able to pronounce it. I think it roughly translates as "Whispering Point"..." he confirms.

Jade turns back towards him with a puzzled look. "Why are you taking me up there?" she asks.

"I think the place speaks for itself..." Tig responds "But I'll tell you more once we get up there..."

Jade doesn't respond at first; but looks at Tig as if she wasn't sure of him or his reasons for being here. She looks directly into his eyes and for a moment Tig had a feeling she was trying to take stock of him. He returns her stare with one of his own; but knew there was an inane grin on his face. He notices that she purses her lips as if in thought.

"Well, seeing as we've already come pretty far already; we might as well finish this..." she finally states as she pulls her gaze away from his. She begins to put her helmet back on and steps around Tig's bike as if to get back onto the Harley.

Tig notices that as they begin to climb up the steeper hill that she has her arms around him more tightly. He wasn't sure if she was afraid she might fall off; or that she had finally started to feel more comfortable with him. Either way, her closeness was more of a distraction than he wanted to admit...

Tig's Place

Jade takes a step forward so she is only a foot away from the edge of the plateau. They were at the highest point for several miles and there was only a slight breeze which cooled the grassy area they had reached. She had never been afraid of heights; but the drop below her would have been disconcerting if she had not been prepared.

The area at the top of the plateau was completely flat and only a few hundred feet across. The grass was overgrown in places but was obviously well-maintained. At the end of the steep but barely passable dirt track, she had noticed a Wahewa Totem Pole had been placed. It was if the Indian monument had been placed there to watch over any visitors.

It was the view that took her breath away for a moment. On all sides she could see for miles around. The town of Charming was nestled in the distance; the roads cutting across the landscape were like silver ribbons. The sky was completely cloudless and very blue this high up. The surrounding area was mostly farm land or forestry. She could just make out what looked like the main lumber-producing area which provided most of Charming's employment.

It was completely quiet, as if the normal sounds of the countryside were afraid of making any noise on such a breath-taking and awesome spot. For a moment she closes her eyes and takes a deep breath. She instinctively knew this was a very special place as she goes completely still. It reminded her of a similar place she had known when she had been growing up...

"If you squint; you can even see the coast from here..." Tig interrupts from where he was a few feet behind her. He was leaning up against his bike which he had parked a few metres away from the edge of the plateau.

Jade doesn't respond. She inhales a deep breath of the clean and fresh air and opens her eyes to continue to take in the scene before her. She finds herself taking off her sunglasses so she can see more clearly.

"Yeah, it took me like that the first time I found this place..." Tig adds. She felt rather than heard where he had moved up to stand right beside her. She knew that there was only inches between them; but for some odd reason she didn't feel her normal compulsion to pull away from anyone who normally got that close to her.

"This is a ... special place..." she responds quietly "Probably scared to the Wahewa..."

She misses the surprise on Tig's face. "How you know that? The local Chief once told me that his people consider this place "touched by their ancestors". Something like that..."

Tig turns to watch Jade and notices that she closes her eyes again. He had the strangest feeling that it wasn't because she was upset; but it was if she was appreciating the moment. For a few moments it is quiet between them again.

"It's very strange..." Jade finally responds as she opens her eyes again and looks out across the distance. "This place reminds me of a spot I used to visit when I was a child..."

"Where was that?" asks Tig in curiosity.

"Halfway across the world from here. A Buddhist temple on top of a mountain in Thailand..." responds Jade.

"Why does it remind you of this place?" asks Tig.

"There's a ... I guess you could call it a stillness... here. As if the rest of the world is very far away and a distant memory. A safe haven from ... everything. The temple had that same ... aura" she turns towards Tig and they stare at each other. Tig notices from the corner of her eye that Jade has moved her hand to tightly grip the ring that was hanging around her neck from the silver chain. Jade suddenly drops her gaze as if she was embarrassed. "I guess that sounds completely and utterly crazy..."

"Wow!" Tig finds himself exclaiming in astonishment. "Not to me, Jade. I know exactly what you mean. Never thought anybody else would get this place..."

She smiles at him and he finds himself grinning back at her in response. It was if they didn't have to say anything else between them. Jade notices that for a moment he looks in curiosity at where her hand held her necklace. She opens out her palm towards him and he takes a closer look. "My wedding ring..." she explains to him. "Mark had two made exactly the same for each of us. He's buried with his..."

Tig notices the brief look of pain across her face and didn't know what to say. He decides it was just best to keep quiet. But he finds himself gingerly putting out his hand and touches the milky-green piece of jewellery that was also on the chain. He turns it over to take a better look. "A Buddha? Made of jade?"

"Only thing my mother left me..." she explains. "I never knew her; she died when I was born..." Jade pauses as she realises she had said too much.

"My grandmother was the only one in the Trager household I had time for..." informs Tig. It was if he needed to swap some personal information with her. "Only thing she left me when she died was two pieces of advice..."

Jade raises her eyebrow and Tig realises she was curious. "She told me never to trust anybody who couldn't look me straight in the eye..." He goes quiet as he gazes at her he finds himself once again lost for a moment in her beautiful green eyes.

"And the other piece of advice?" Jade finally asks when she realises Tig had lost his train of thought.

Tig laughs. "That if I ever found the right woman, not to lose her. To do anything it takes to keep her..."

Jade looks at him for a moment as if she did not believe him. "Are you pulling my leg, Alex?" she asks softly.

"Nope. The Wahewa Chief warned me it's bad luck to tell a lie up here..." he responds. "Honest, Jade, that's what she really told me on her death-bed..."

Jade drops her gaze as if she felt awkward. She then turns back towards to take in the surrounding view. It goes uncomfortably quiet between them.

"How did you find this place?" she finally asks.

"Now, that's a long story" advises Tig. "I'll tell you if you tell me something about yourself..."

Tig was expecting Jade to refuse or be annoyed at him. Instead he is surprised as Jade leans down and sits herself on the grass. She looks up at him and offers him another smile. He gingerly lowers himself to the ground and it takes a few moments before he gets himself comfortable; his ribs were still quite sore. They sat with only a little distance between them. Tig seemed to instinctively know that if he got too close it would spoil the afternoon. Actually, he realised that he was quite content just to sit beside her at his favourite spot.

"What did you want to know?" she asks.

"Life story?" he asks with a hopeful tone.

"That would take too long. Be more specific..." she responds.

Tig finds himself laughing at first. It takes him a few minutes before he can come up with a question. "Got about a million questions, sweetheart. But right now I'm dying to know what you did before you moved to Charming?"

She looks at him with a perplexed frown. "What I did?"

"I think you know exactly what I mean, Jade. I'm guessing special forces of some sort..."

"I can't tell you that, Alex..." she responds. He was expecting her to be annoyed or irate; but she didn't appeared to be fazed by his question

"Delta Force? Seals? Or some deep-shit Black Ops unit? Definitely not marines; you'd be wasted on normal military..." he persists.

Jade grins at him. "If I told you, I would have to kill you, Mr Trager" she responds.

Tig wasn't sure if she was teasing him or not. It dawns on him that she wasn't going to answer this line of questioning. "Okay, something else then. How come you decided to move to Charming?"

Jade is quiet at first. Tig is surprised when she starts to speak. "We never had a permanent home when we were married. Me and Mark..." she explains, as if this was a question she didn't mind answering "But we decided to get ourselves a place in Miami. There was a spot along the coast just outside the city that we stumbled across by accident. Mark brought a house there for us for when he retired. We had just started to get it refurbished when he..."

Jade pauses and turns away from Tig to look out across the landscape. She puts her hands around her knees and rests her head; and Tig got the impression she was struggling with what to say to him. Tig wasn't sure if she was going to continue her story, but stays quiet. "After he was killed..." Jade begins but then pauses again. "I couldn't go back there. Too many memories, I guess..."

"Jesus, Jade" interrupts Tig. "I'm sorry. You don't have to tell me if you don't want to..."

"You asked, Alex. I don't mind..." she continues. "It was about that time that I was thinking of moving to L.A. for a while. I have some friends here. When my lawyer told me a relative had left me a house in California, it seemed ... opportune at the time. I thought it would be nice to live somewhere ... quiet. You know; normal..."

"Shit! And then we end up on your doorstep..." exclaims Tig. "Real sorry, sweetheart..."

Jade laughs suddenly as if to break the sad moment. "You know another reason why I thought I'd like to move here?"

Tig offers her a puzzled look.

"I did some digging. I though Charming was some back-water town that had a low crime-rate and no plans for development. Just a regular town. Guess I didn't look far enough..." she advises.

"You don't regret moving here?" Tig asks in consternation. He hated the thought that recent events might mean she moved away.

"Haven't made up my mind yet..." she replies.

"Maybe I could show you the sites..." he suggests.

Jade turns her head and raises her eyebrow at him.

"There a few locally-run diners in town I could show you. Not a date, I promise..." he responds.

"Anywhere that does a decent take-out?" she asks. "I notice there aren't any franchises in town..."

"Couple of places that deliver. Why you asking?" he asks in curiosity.

Jade smiles at him. "You wanted to know something personal about me? Mark always said he'd rather face a firing squad than taste my cooking..."

Tig returns her smile. "Shit! You take out me, Kozik and Juice like we weren't really any trouble. But you can't cook?"

"Never did learn how to; guess I never had the patience..." she responds.

It goes quiet between them again. Tig remembers that she had appreciated the cookies that Ellie had made for her; that she didn't cook made sense. "I'll let you know the best places in town if you do something for me..." asks Tig.

"That's two favours, Alex. You still owe me your story..." Jade interrupts.

"Okay, I guess I do at that..." responds Tig. He goes quiet for a moment as if gather his thoughts. He ends up looking out at the view from where they were sitting. "You know I was in prison, right?" he asks. He briefly looks across at her and she nods.

"Fourteen months this time. Fourteen months too-fucking long. I really thought I was losing it, you know? The odd thing was that it didn't start while I was actually in the Can. I was too busy watching my brother's backs; too busy keeping my own ass out of harm's way and making sure that what happened to Jax didn't happen again..." Tig pauses and shudders for a moment. "The day I got out was the worst, I think. It was like ... I don't know ... like I couldn't get a grip on the fact that I was finally out of there. I kept turning around expecting to see everyone wearing Orange suits; or watching out for one of the screws to appear. I kept hearing that damn siren they use when they open the doors and gates..."

He looked across to Jade as if expecting her to make a comment. He was surprised to notice the sympathetic look in her eyes. "Freedom has its own cost..." she states softly.

Tig looks taken aback. He suddenly had the distinct impression that she understood exactly what he was talking about. "I knew I had to get away for a while..." he continues. "So I just got on my Harley and left. Never even thought of telling any of the guys; I was so fucking out of it. I just kept riding my bike for ages. Like I needed to feel the wind on my face again. To get rid of the stink of fourteen months of living with other men 24-7. To just have some time alone, I guess..."Tig looks across at Jade again and she offers him a sad smile as if to encourage him to continue.

"I ended up at the Wahewa reservation. They're good people, you know? When the shit went upside down the last time after Donna's death; I ended up here..." He notices the puzzled look Jade gave him. "That's another story; not ready yet to tell you that one yet..." He goes quiet as if he didn't know what else to say.

"What happened?" Jade finally prompts.

"You know, to this day I couldn't tell you how I landed up at this spot. All I remember is the Chief suggesting I come up here to take in the view. He said I was welcome to come up here; even though the place is normally for their own people..."

"That was your first visit..." Jade interrupts.

"Yeah, I guess you figured out that one. This place is ... I dunno ... different. I can't explain it. All I know is that I stayed up here for two whole days. The Chief was kind enough to lend me some supplies. When I came back down I knew that I was okay again. Well, as okay as I get..." Tig grins at her. "You know the really weird thing? When Clay and the others asked where I had got too; I couldn't tell them. They all just assumed I'd found a couple of woman to shack up with for 48 hours and we had a wild party..."

It goes quiet again between them.

"You come up here very often?" asks Jade as she looks across at Tig.

"Normally when I need to think. The place seems to clear my head..." he responds. "Lately I come up most Sunday mornings when the garage is closed." Tig snorts in sudden laughter. "Guess it's my version of going to church..."

"It's very ... peaceful. I can understand why you like to come up here..." she replies.

Tig leans forward and starts to pick at some of the grass. He knew that he should be embarrassed that he had been so open with Jade. The strange thing was that he didn't even feel uncomfortable or awkward right now. Baring his soul to her had seemed right, somehow. It made him realise that he had never felt this relaxed with a woman before; it definitely was a new experience.

"Thank you, Alex..." Jade interrupts his thoughts.

"What for, doll?" he asks.

"For showing me ... this place. For bringing me here and ... sharing it with me..." she responds.

"I'm glad you like it too, Jade..." Tig responds quietly as he leans towards her. "Maybe we could... I mean..." He finds himself going quiet.

Jade looks across at him with in bewilderment. "I thought you just wanted to be friends..." she states.

Tig finds himself floundering as he realises she had automatically thought he wanted to take their relationship further. He grins at her as he found her directness rather refreshing. "That's not what I was going to ask, Jade..."

"What then?" she asks.

"Actually, I was going to ask if you wanted to come up here with me on Sundays? I promise nothing else other than as friends! Maybe we could come up here one evening, too? It's spectacular when the sun goes down. Just pretty-fucking awesome with just the stars at night..."

Tig finds himself holding his breath as he waits for her answer. He watches Jade as she puts her head back on her knees as if she is deep in thought.

Tig had planned this all along. He had wanted to share this very personal place with the woman he was head-over-heels in love with. The Wahewa Chief had told him that it was a tradition amongst his people that new couples came up to this point to share secrets with their loved ones.

The thought had been on his mind that maybe sharing this place with Jade would be an opportunity for both to them to get to know each other better. He got the impression that she didn't trust many people; and he wanted to show her that she could trust him.

And if even if she just wanted to be friends for now; then it would give him a chance to get to know more about her. One day it might even mean they take their relationship further...

Just at that moment they hear a screech from above them. They both look up to see an Eagle diving towards the other end of the plateau. It quickly disappears behind the other side; and they both turn to each other and smile at having shared this rare site.

"Wow!" Tig can't help stating. He finds himself turning towards Jade and knows that there is an expectant look on his face as he waits for her answer...


	5. Chapter 5  Patch

_The following is a short fill-in whilst writing the next chapter. I hope you enjoy it._

_Three weeks after Zobelle's death..._

Kozik

Chuckie is behind the bar tidying up, when he hears to door to the club's chapel open. Kozik is the first to walk out, and Chuckie is surprised to note the dazed look on his face. Kozik walks up to the bar and Chuckie automatically finds himself pouring out a drink for him. The quiet is interrupted as the others come out from the room and there is noisy chatter from the club's members.

Chuckie looks on in further surprise as both Bobby and Piney walk up to where Kozik was leaning against the bar and both slap him on the back. Opie is just behind them and steps up to Kozik and hugs him as he also cuffs him on the back.

"Congrats, man!" states Opie. He turns to Chuckie who is hurriedly pouring out more drinks for the rest of the SAMCRO men. "Get the good stuff out, Chuckie" he instructs.

"Patch party!" shouts out Happy, as he stands behind Opie and raises his arms in the air in celebration.

Chuckie offers Kozik a beaming smile as it finally dawns on him why the men were suddenly in a celebrative mood. One of the crow-eaters sidles up to Kozik and offers him a smile. Kozik happily puts his arm around the woman and gives her a long kiss; accompanied by the sound of cheering from his new brothers.

Patched

It is a while later that same evening; and the club was already in full swing of celebrating Kozik's patching-in party. Kozik's usual smile has become a beam and his face is already going red from the amount of drink his colleagues – and now brothers – had forced onto him. He had taken a moment to sit at one of the benches outside the club, and now had two women sitting either side of him. He pauses from kissing the women to his right, as his eye happens to catch Tig, who was talking to Clay.

Tig's face had begun to heal, but his face was still discoloured from the bruising. Kozik has a thoughtful look on his face as he stares at his new brother. Tig doesn't seem to notice.

"Stay here, ladies. I'll be right back..." he exclaims happily as he gets himself up. He finds he is unsteady for a moment, but takes a determined step as he notices that Clay and Tig had obviously finished their conversation and Clay turns to walk away. It was the first chance he had gotten to get Tig on his own for a moment, and he drunkenly walks up to the man who had finally allowed him to become a member of SAMCRO.

Tig offers him a grin and raises the beer in his hand towards Kozik as if in acknowledgement. "I'm happy for you, man..." he begins to say to the man who had once been his best friend. He pauses as he notices the frown across Kozik's brow.

"Okay, that does it!" exclaims Kozik as he stands right in front of Tig with an annoyed look on his face.

Tig raises his eyebrow in puzzlement.

"You!" Kozik points his finger towards Tig, but finds he can't keep his hand steady and it sways a little in time with his unsteady gate. He pauses as if thinking of what to say next.

Tig was more sober than Kozik, despite having a few beers. He grins at his colleague as he realises Kozik was almost ready to fall on his face.

"Me what?" he responds as Kozik continues to stare at him. There is the sound of amusement in his tone.

"I don't know who the fuck you are, pal..." Kozik admonishers as he wags his finger at Tig. "But you're not fooling anyone with that disguise of yours. What you done with the real Tig?"

Tig looks completely at a loss for once. It is Juice who comes to the rescue, as he had been near enough to overhear their conversation. He steps up to stand beside Tig with a grin on his face. "Okay, man. Where you get the drugs from?" he asks Kozik.

Kozik turns towards Juice with his finger still pointed. "Oh, come on, kid. Don't tell me he's fooled you too?"

"Shoulda come see me. I'd find you something that wasn't quite so strong..." replies Juice with a touch of worry.

"I'm not on anything!" Kozik's voice is outraged.

"He's right, Juice" Tig adds. "Kozik's an ex-drug head. Won't touch anything stronger than a whisky..."

"I didn't ask for your opinion!" exclaims Kozik as he turns back to Tig. He suddenly realises he still has a finger pointed at the other two men and drops his hand. "I want to know what you've fucking done with my friend!"

"What you on about, man?" asks Juice.

Kozik looks back at Juice. "This prick here ain't the real Tig..." he exclaims to Juice, as if he was explaining something to a child. "C'mon, can't you see it? Tig would never agree to a vote to have me patched-in. Over his dead body was the last time we talked about it..."

Juice and Tig exchange a puzzled glance. "Not funny, Kozik" responds Tig. There is a genuine look of concern on his face as he peers at Kozik.

Juice just offers Kozik a further look of puzzlement in response.

"And I noticed something else..." continues Kozik, as he takes no notice of the two men's concern. "This is a party! The real Tig would at least be making out with some pussy by now. You even see a woman hanging on his arm tonight?"

Juice grins as he turns to Tig. "Got you on that one, man..." he exclaims.

Tig looks at Juice and then back at Kozik with a bewildered look on his face.

"I agree" states a voice from behind Tig. Tig turns around to find Happy standing behind them. "He's been acting weird the last few weeks..."

"You notice he disappears every Saturday evening real early? Even when there's a party on? Like he's got an appointment to keep?" adds Opie where he stands next to Happy.

"He's never around on Sunday" adds Juice. "Can't ever get hold of him on his cell on Sunday mornings. Always comes up with some excuse if we need him..."

"I reckon the spooks took him a few weeks ago. Just after the Zobelle-thing. Put a doppelganger in his place. Probably had surgery to make him look like the real Tig..." adds Happy. He had always been a bit of a conspiracy-nut.

"It would explain the bruises on his face..." adds Juice. His grin had now changed to a more serious look. "That kind of surgery would take a while to heal..."

"Feds must be real desperate to get a man inside the club..." adds Opie. "I've gotta admit, it's an original plan..."

Tig's face is one of absolute shock as his head turns from one man to another as he follows his brother's conversation. "You're all fucking nuts!" he interrupts.

Happy steps up to stand right behind Tig and puts his hands on his shoulders. "You come quietly, man. No trouble, you hear?"

Tig tries to shake off his colleague but Happy puts his arms around him more tightly to keep him still. It suddenly goes quiet amongst the men of SAMCRO. Even the music is turned down as the rest of the men and women at the party all look on.

"I knew it!" exclaims Kozik. "I fucking knew it! I bet the Feds have spirited Tig away in some WITPRO thing" He angrily turns towards the stunned Tig. "You're gonna tell me where you've stashed him, you prick! Or I'll shoot you where you stand!" Kozik pulls out a gun from his belt and points it towards Tig.

"We can't kill him, Kozik" adds Opie calmly. "He's a Federal agent"

"You think I'm gonna let the bloody authorities get away with this?" adds Clay, who had joined Bobby and Jax as they surround Tig.

"We'll just bury him so his corpse's never found" adds Jax.

"I think we should vote on it" comments Bobby. "Killing a Fed's pretty serious..."

"I'll do it!" volunteers Happy with the sound of delight in his voice. "In memory of the real Tig, wherever he is..."

"When he doesn't turn up to report to his Fed contact on Sunday, they'll come looking. We need to make sure we all have alibis tonight..." adds Jax.

Tig looks around in complete astonishment. He was so shocked he couldn't say anything. He flinches as Kozik points the gun at him and shoots.

Payback

Water squirts out of the fake gun and lands all over Tig's tee-shirt. Juice is the first to chuckle as Tig looks down at his shirt in absolute incrediblity. The others follow, and before long there is the sound of roars of laughter coming from the area outside the club. Happy and Opie laugh so hard they have to prop themselves up on some nearby benches.

It suddenly dawns on Tig that he had been the butt of an extremely well-planned joke. He looks up from his wet tee-shirt to find Kozik beaming at him. The smirk on his face said it all.

"You fucking prick..." states Tig with anger in his voice. He steps forward as if he was going to hit Kozik. Kozik warily takes a step back.

"None of that, Tig" admonishers the nearby Clay. He had been laughing so hard his voice comes out breathless.

Tig looks around at his brothers in utter disgust.

"Sorry, Tig" Kozik apologies to Tig. There is a genuine note of sincerity in his voice. He had begun to realise that his colleague was really pissed at him and understood it was time to calm the situation down.

"And you were all fucking in on this?" he states irritably at his colleagues.

"Couldn't help myself..." interrupts Juice; still laughing. "It was such a sweet plan..."

"Let me guess..." responds Tig "Kozik's fucking idea..."

Kozik beams at him. "Clay asked me if I wanted anything as a Patching-in present. I just couldn't resist the thought of making you squirm. Jax gave me the original idea when he mentioned you DO seem to disappear on Sundays..." He pauses as he notices the frown across Tig's brow. "No sweat, Tiggy. We all know you've gotten a woman hid away somewhere. None of our fucking business..."

"Everybody else added to the original idea. It just got better and better..." interrupts Happy, who was still chuckling.

"I think the hardest part was keeping a straight face..." grins Jax.

"You should have seen the look on your face, Tig..." laughs Opie.

Kozik looks surprised as Tig suddenly has a grin on his face. "You should all be on a TV show. You're all pretty good actors..." he joins in their laughter. "You had me completely hoodwinked..."

Kozik smiles as he realises that Tig had gotten over his initial anger. The two women he had been sitting with earlier walk up to stand either side of him. Kozik puts his arms around them as he joins in the laughter. The other men all begin to move away as if to leave Kozik and Tig alone.

Tig abruptly steps up to Kozik with a wicked smirk on his face. Kozik gives him a wary look.

"Okay, man. You got me. Pax?" He offers out his hand and Kozik finds himself shaking hands with his colleague.

"You're not sore at me, Tiggy?" asks Kozik.

"Nah, man" grins Tig. "Great joke; gotta laugh that you got me going there for a while..." He leans forward and Kozik finds himself in a hug and they slap each other's backs. However, just as they pull away Tig whispers in Kozik's ear. "I am SO fucking going to get you for this, Kozik. You'd better watch your back from now on..."

Finale

Chuckie grins as he watches the club members still laughing over the prank that had been played on Tig. He hadn't been in on the whole plan whilst the preparations were being made for the Patch-In party; but had been astute enough to know something had been going on amongst the SAMCRO men. Clay had specifically told him not to speak to Tig about what was going on.

He stood up against the bar as he takes a break from serving drinks and takes a swig from a beer bottle. However, he pauses for a moment as he observes the two men who had been instrumental in providing some unusual and entertaining excitement that evening.

Chuckie is the only one to notice that Kozik's face changes to confusion as the two men pull away from their hug. He notices the evil grin that is on Tig's face and Kozik seems to be stunned for a few moments.

Tig takes the opportunity to wrap his arms around the two women who stood beside Kozik. He pulls them both with him as he walks away from Kozik. He turns to kiss one of the women before he turns back to Kozik.

Chuckie had the oddest feeling that Tig was trying to make some sort of point to Kozik. Kozik has a brief look of consternation on his face before he realises that Tig had just stolen his women away. He suddenly grins as he heads out after his colleague with determination on his face to get his girls back.

Chuckie shakes his head to himself as he realises that Kozik's prank meant that it was not going to be plain sailing for those two in the future...


	6. Chapter 6 The Race

Opie

It was a Thursday afternoon; and unusually quiet at the Teller-Morrow Garage. Tig and Kozik were out collecting a couple of Repo's, which normally came in on Thursday mornings. Happy had disappeared somewhere. Opie and Juice were in the garage finishing up a brake job with Dog. Chuckie was in the club-house looking for some invoices; and Chibbs was also working in the garage on his bike.

Gemma was in the office going through some paperwork, which was spread out across her desk. Both Jax and Clay had vanished when she had mentioned that morning that it was almost time for the annual Tax audit; and she needed help with some of the books. Even Bobby couldn't be found; and he usually volunteered to help out. It had not put her in a good mood, and most of the crew were deliberately keeping out of the office.

A pick-up slowly pulls through the open front gate and pulls up outside of the garage; it was being driven as though there was a problem with the steering. Opie happened to have been standing outside the front taking a breath of fresh air, as it was hot in the garage. As the door to the pick-up begins to open, he suddenly remembers where he recognised the pick-up from. He notices that up on the back of the vehicle there appears to be a bike that is wrapped up in tarpaulin.

He steps forward with a smile of welcome for Jade as she steps down from the vehicle. He finds himself wiping his greasy and dirty hands on the cloth tucked into his belt. Jade was wearing a plain brown leather jacket over her normal tee-shirt and jeans. She was wearing cowboy boots for a change. Her hair was tied up in a ponytail but Opie notices she has a smudge of dirt on her right cheek.

"Afternoon, Jade" greets Opie. He doesn't speak loudly over the noise coming from the garage as it suddenly dawns on him that Juice and Chibbs hadn't noticed her arrival. He keeps his back to the open garage so that nobody can see past him and notice their visitor; as he realises the last thing she probably wanted was the other men annoying her.

"Hello, Mr Winston" Jade returns his salutation.

"Opie, remember?" he responds. "The only person who calls me Mr Winston is my bank manager..."

Jade shyly smiles at his joke. "Is Al ... Mr Trager around?" she asks as she peers around the front courtyard of the garage.

"Tig? He's out on job; might be a while. Anything I can help with?" offers Opie.

Jade walks around to the other side of the vehicle and Opie follows her. She peers down at the front tyre and Opie looks down and notices that the tyre and rim on the front looked crooked. He bends down to take a closer look.

"I hit a large pot-hole up on the Jefferson road" explains Jade as Opie looks up at her with a query on his face. "I lost the tyre and swapped it for the spare. But I think the rim was damaged. It was starting to get hard to steer..."

Opie pulls out a spanner from his pocket and hits the rim a couple of times. "Yeah, it's shot. It'll need taking out and might need replacing?" he explains as he stands back up.

"Will it take long?" asks Jade.

Opie notices the apprehensive look that briefly crosses her face. "Special deal for friends of the club" smiles Opie. "We'll do a rush job on it. Couple of hours?"

"How much?" asks Jade with the anxious tone in her voice.

"No charge" advises Opie.

Opie notices the look of relief on her face. "Thank you, Mr ... Opie. I wouldn't normally take advantage, but I'm pretty strapped for cash right now. I could still pay by card..."

"You trying to insult us, Jade?" Opie laughs. "The boys would kill me at the thought of charging you. And if they didn't object, Ellie would definitely have my ar ... backside strung up. She's getting to be a little bossy-boots these days..."

Chuckie

Chuckie walks through the garage from the club, with a pile of invoices in his hands. He carefully makes his way around Chibbs who was concentrating on repairing his Harley. It was noisy as he was revving the bike's engine; whilst Dog and Juice were underneath the nearby Mercedes that was having its brakes replaced.

As there wasn't anybody around to open the door for him, he has to turn around to push the door open with his backside. As he turns around he notices that Gemma was no longer sitting at the desk; she was standing at the window and had her fingers on the blinds. She was peering through them with an annoyed look on her face.

"What's that gash want?" Gemma mumbles to herself.

Chuckie puts the invoices down onto the only clear spot on the desk and gingerly steps up to stand next to Gemma. He peers between the space between the blinds and notices that Opie is standing with a young woman in front of a pick-up. He was surprised to see that Opie was laughing and chatting with her.

"Who's that?" he can't help but ask.

"Mrs-bloody- Hunter" responds Gemma. "Jesus, Opie's a married man now..."

Chuckie takes a closer look at the woman, who happens to turn towards the office and he sees her more clearly for the first time. "Pretty..." admits Chuckie.

He hears an exasperated sigh from Gemma. He turns towards her, and as he notices the glare she gives him he suddenly realises he had said the wrong thing. "I'll get the other Invoices" he finds himself squeaking before Gemma can lay into him. He hurriedly reverses out of the office and straight back into the garage.

Gemma turns towards the blinds and goes back to watching Opie and that ... woman. Opie points towards where she is standing; and it suddenly dawns on her that Opie was asking Jade Hunter to wait in the office. The young woman hands over her keys to Opie, and she notices the grin he offers her.

She is totally surprised when Opie brings up the cloth in his hands, and wipes it across the woman's' face as if removing something. Gemma tuts to herself in disgust at the way Opie was so familiar with the young woman. She snaps the blind back down in irritation and turns back to her desk.

Juice

Juice was lying underneath the Mercedes working on the brakes. Dog had gone to find another spanner, and was at the other end of the garage. Juice was trying to listen to the song on the radio, but all he can hear is the revving of Chibbs's bike.

"Could you keep it down, Chibbs!" he shouts out. "That's my favourite song they're playing..."

Chibbs doesn't reply, but the revving of the motorbike goes quieter although the engine is still running.

"Hey, watch it, Chuckie" Juice hears Chibbs suddenly exclaim. Juice can see from his position under the car that Chuckie had almost tripped over Chibbs.

"Sorry" apologises Chuckie. "Had to get outta there in a hurry..." he gasps.

"You're the one that volunteered to help Gemma with the accounts..." moans Chibbs. "Jax should've told you she's always in a bad mood at auditing time..."

"It's not that..." confirms Chuckie's voice. "We have a visitor out front and Gemma's real pissed..."

"Who's that?" asks Juice from underneath the car.

"Not sure. I think it's the woman Clay and Jax had that run-in with..." advises Chuckie as he hurriedly disappears towards the clubhouse.

Juice drops his spanner and hurriedly pulls himself out from underneath the Mercedes. In the meantime, Chibbs quickly turns off his bike's engine. It is a race to see which one of them gets the quickest out of the garage; but Juice is younger and faster. He exits the garage first.

Kozik

It had been silent between the two men for the last ten minutes. Tig had insisted on taking over the driving on their way back to the garage, and Kozik hadn't argued (for once) and seated himself in the passenger seat. The recovery vehicle they were in was hooked up with a repossessed Cadillac on the back.

Kozik is staring out of the window, and felt uncomfortable with the quiet between them. He briefly looks across to Tig before deciding to say something. "Jesus, Tig. When you gonna give me break?" he suddenly asks.

Tig doesn't look away from driving as he responds; he knew exactly what was on Kozik's mind. "You must have known they'd be repercussions, man..."

"How many times do you want me to say I'm sorry, Tig?" pleads Kozik. Tig stays quiet. "What else do you want me to do? I've even apologised to you in Church. You know how awkward that made me feel?" Kozik's tone is irate.

"Not enough" Tig automatically responds.

"You've got no fucking sense of humour. You know that?" Kozik states angrily.

Tig is silent at first. Kozik goes back to staring out the window but turns back in surprise when Tig finally responds. "I appreciate a joke just as much as the next man, Kozik..."

"Fuck, Tiggy! It was weeks ago. Can't you let it go..." interrupts Kozik.

"You wanna hear this or not?" Tig is starting to get irritated at Kozik's whining. Kozik stays quiet this time. "You pulled that on me any other time; I'd be the first one to laugh my head off. You know why I'm still mad at you? It was your..." Tig pauses for a moment as if thinking of the word he needed. "... Ingratitude."

"What!" exclaims Kozik.

"I agreed to your patch-in against my better judgement. After I talked to... I mean I began to think some things through. I realised I've treated you unfairly ever since I got outta prison; you were a great help while we were all inside. I thought you deserved a chance after the Zobelle-thing. But then you slap me right back in the face by taking the piss out of what I did for you..." explains Tig.

Kozik is stunned into silence; totally taken by surprise by Tig's honesty with him. He had not felt any real guilt about his joke on Tig until now. He starts to finally understand why his ex-best friend was still so mad at him; and it dawns on him that maybe he HAD gone too far.

Tig's cell rings, which he had left on the dashboard. He slows down and pulls up on a convenient lay-by and then reaches for the phone. "Yeah" he greets.

Kozik looks on as it goes silent for a while as Tig listens to the caller. Kozik is further taken by surprise as a large grin begins to grow across Tig's face. "Thanks, Op. I'll be straight there. Owe you one..." he responds before finishing the call.

"What's up?" asks Kozik in curiosity.

Tig ignores him and takes off the brake and hurriedly pulls out from the lay-by; a passing car beeps their horn as it narrowly misses them. Kozik begins to notice that Tig was driving a lot faster than normal; he can hear the Cadillac on the back bouncing on the road.

"Where's the fire?" asks Kozik as he realised it would be good idea to put his seat-belt on.

"Gotta get back to the garage..." states Tig.

"Thought we were gonna get something to eat first?" asks Kozik.

"It can wait. More important things to do..." responds Tig.

Gemma

There was an awkward silence between Gemma and Jade as they both sat in the office. Gemma had put her head down to the accounting when Opie had walked in with the woman she had taken a dislike too. Opie had politely asked Mrs Hunter – or Jade, as he'd called her – to take a seat whilst he took a closer look at her vehicle. Opie had then left the two ladies to it without saying anything to Gemma.

Jade had sat herself on the visitors' chair, and had picked up a bike magazine which she was flicking through in silence. She had brought in a bulky rucksack with her; which she had carefully put down beside the seat. Gemma was finding it hard – for once – to say anything to the other woman. She finally clears her throat as if to say something; but before she can Juice abruptly walks into the office from the connecting door to the garage.

Gemma notices the idiotic grin that Juice offers Jade as she looks up at him. "Mrs Hunter, can I get you a coffee while you're waiting?" he finally asks.

"The coffee machine's on the fritz..." Gemma interrupts before she can help herself. "I've sent Phil out to get some instant..."

Jade looks from Gemma and back to Juice. She offers him a shy smile. "No, thank you, Mr Ortiz. I'm not fond of coffee..."

"Cold drink? Beer? Something stronger?" Juice smiles back at her. He ignores the sound coming from Gemma; which suspiciously sounded like she was clicking her tongue in annoyance.

"Thank you, but I have a long drive to make once my pick-up's repaired" responds Jade as she goes back to flicking through the magazine.

Gemma picks up on the disappointed look on Juice's face. "The Mercedes needs to be ready by five, Juice..." she reminds him. She had tried to keep the annoyance from her voice, but her tone comes out sharper than she intended.

She is surprised to see the irate look Juice gives her in return. "Dog's almost finished it, Gemma..." he explains.

"Then you can start helping Opie out with our ... customer's pick-up..." responds Gemma. "I'm sure she doesn't want to wait any longer than she has to..."

"I'll do that..." he responds. He offers another smile to Jade, but she has her face down in the magazine as it trying to keep to herself and stay out-of-the-way. Juice sighs as he turns around back and heads back into the garage.

It goes silent between the two women again. Gemma realises that Jade is not really reading the magazine but using it as an excuse to keep her head down. "I never got to ask you..." beings Gemma. She is interrupted as the outside door opens and Chibbs walks in.

"Afternoon, lassie. Nice to see you again..." he greets Jade cheerfully. She looks up again from the magazine in surprise. Chibbs offer her a smile but turns towards Gemma as he hears his President's wife sigh to herself. "You got the number for the Lodi scrap-yard, Gemma?" he asks.

"The number's pinned up on the board in the garage" responds an irate Gemma. "As you very-well know..."

Chibbs looks taken aback at Gemma's attitude. "Sorry" he mumbles. "Forgot..." he advises as he finds himself backing out of door at the look Gemma gives him. Jade puts her head back into the magazine, but Gemma is surprised that she is trying to hide the smile on her face.

It goes quiet between them. It suddenly dawns on Gemma that maybe she was being over-harsh with this woman. After all, it wasn't her fault that the men were all doing their best to hang around her. "They're just a bunch of adolescent school-boys..." Gemma suddenly states to Jade. "Don't take any notice of them..."

Jade doesn't respond at first, and Gemma goes back to trying to concentrate on the Tax returns in front of her. "It wasn't my choice to come here, Mrs Morrow..." Jade suddenly advises.

"You do know there's a new garage across town from here?" responds Gemma automatically. "Family-run business, I think. Armenians..."

"I know" replies Jade as she looks up from her magazine. "I tried there first, but they were closed. Some sort of religious holiday..."

"Oh" Gemma responds in surprise. She was taken aback that the younger woman seemed to be honest with her.

"If the steering hadn't started to go, I would have tried to get to Lodi" Jade explains further.

"Well, I guess it couldn't be helped, then..." admits Gemma; starting to actually feel embarrassed.

It goes silent again for a while, until Opie walks in. Jade looks up at him.

"We need to take your bike off the back, Jade..." explains Opie. "So we can put the pick-up up on the ramp and take a look underneath. I'm afraid you have to be there to watch when we unload the bike, for insurance purposes."

Jade quickly puts down her magazine and gets to her feet as she picks up her rucksack and puts it over her shoulder. Opie starts to turn around as if to lead her out of the office, but Jade briefly pauses first. "It was nice to meet you again, Mrs Morrow" she states in farewell to Gemma.

Gemma looks up in total surprise. Well, she couldn't fault the young woman's manners, at least. Opie gives Gemma a grin before he closes the door behind them; as if he found something funny.

Gemma at first tries to get back to the accounting, but finds she can't concentrate. Eventually, she gives in to her impulse to get up and peer through the blinds again. She is not surprised that Jade is standing by her vehicle with all of the men hovering around. Even the prospects were outside; although they were warily keeping their distance. However, she notices that Juice and Chibbs were taking a closer look at the bike on the back of the vehicle.

Happy had appeared from somewhere and had joined the group. One of the garage's recovery vehicles suddenly pulls up and blocks her view for a moment. Kozik and Tig get out, and she sighs to herself as she notices they were also now joining in. It was only later that she realised that Tig had automatically stood beside Jade in the normal stance he took when he was protecting Clay's back.

"Like moths round a flame" she finds herself saying to herself. "At least one is gonna get burnt..."

Happy

"Neat!" states Happy. He wasn't looking at the young woman, but at the bike. He can hear Chibbs whistle in appreciation behind him. Kozik and Juice had taken off the bike from the back of the pick-up. As they had lowered it to the ground, the cover had fallen off enough to show that underneath the cover was a racing bike. "A Norton Challenger" exclaims Happy, as he begins to pull off the rest of the tarpaulin to take a closer look. "Don't see one of those every day..."

"Happy!" states an annoyed Opie. "Put that cover back!" Happy turns around in surprise, and then realises that all of the others are also looking at Opie in astonishment. "It's none of our business what bike's under there. It's Jade's property..." he explains.

Chibbs quietly steps forward and begins to help Happy cover the bike back up, but both pause as Jade speaks up from behind him. "It's okay, Opie" she states. "They're welcome to take a look..."

The rest of the boys all gather around the bike as Chibbs and Happy pull off the tarpaulin so the bike is fully revealed. Only Tig stays where he is, as he stands beside Jade in a protective position.

They can all see that the bike was a racing classic, but although it had obviously been lovingly restored the paint-job had not as yet been finished and there was still some rust and the original paint on the bike. Chibbs and Kozik bend down to take a closer look at the engine and gears, whilst Happy is looking at the front.

Juice was hesitant at first, as he couldn't make up his mind to stay near to Jade or take a closer look at the bike. The bike won, as he notices the warning look Tig gives him. "Someone did a good job on this" Juice finally states.

"Seems to be all in working-order" adds Kozik.

"Wonder what condition the engines in?" muses Happy as he takes a closer look. He notices a shadow fall across him in the bright sunlight, and looks up to see Jade offer him the keys with a shy smile. He offers a beaming grin in return, before he gingerly takes the keys.

He then quickly gets to his feet and sits himself across the bike. He notices the disappointed looks on the faces of Juice, Chibbs and Kozik that he had been the one to try out the engine. Jade takes a step back as Happy tries the bike, which splutters the first time he kicks it into gear. She almost collides with Tig who was standing right behind her.

Happy kicks it into gear again, and this time the engine starts. He misses the quiet conversation behind him between Tig and Jade, as the others crowd back around the bike.

Tig

"Didn't know you owned a bike" comments Tig with a grin on his face; as he looks on and notices the enthusiasm coming from his fellow club members.

"It's not mine. My husband was working on it in his spare time..." comments Jade; but then she goes quiet.

Tig didn't know how to respond at first. "Sounds like it could do with a tune up..." he finally replies to fill in the awkward silence between them.

Jade pauses as she observes Kozik and the others as they start talking about the merits of the bike. "It's been in storage since last year. I only picked it up this morning..."

"You ride it?" he asks quietly. He had visions of him and Jade heading for their usual rendezvous side-by-side on their bikes.

"Not really" she replies. "Mark took me out on it a few times..." She turns towards him for a moment, and Tig picks up on the thoughtful look on her face.

"Something up?" he finds himself asking.

She looks surprised for a moment; and he smiles at her as he realises he was starting to get her well enough to pick up to know when something was troubling her. "Could we talk? Somewhere quiet?" she asks as she turns back to watching the SAMCRO men.

It finally dawns on Tig that she wanted to speak to him privately. "Clubhouse should be empty. We can talk there..." he responds, and turns around to lead the way.

She turns around to follow him, but they both pause when they hear a voice from behind them.

"Going somewhere, Tig?" asks Opie. He had been watching the two of them from the other side of where the bike stood; and was the only one who had noticed the two of them deep in conversation.

The other men all turn around to see what was going on; and most of them now notice that Jade was just about to follow Tig. Chibbs and Kozik swap a surprised look. Juice looks a little bewildered; whilst Happy peers between Jade and Tig with a thoughtful look on his own face.

"Mrs Hunter and I need to have a little chat. Nothing to concern yourself with, boys" he states. "Opie, you mind getting that pick-up finished?" he pointedly suggests.

"Jade? Everything okay?" asks Opie. He ignores the glare that Tig gives him that Opie was being so over-protective.

Jade offers him a smile. "It's fine, Opie."

"This way, babe" interrupts Tig as he quickly turns around and leads Jade away; before any of the others could raise any more objections.

Tig walks into the clubhouse first, and notices that it is not empty as he had assumed. Chuckie was standing by the bar talking to one of the crow-eaters, who was stocking up the beer. Chuckie turns towards them as he first notices Tig with the pretty-young woman in tow. He offers a smile, and steps forward as if to introduce himself.

"Out!" states Tig. Chuckie looks disappointed as he heads back towards the garage. The heavily-made up woman behind the bar looks at Tig for a moment. She then hurriedly turns around to leave out the back at the pointed look that he gives her.

Tig walks around to the other side of the bar and turns around to Jade, with a smile back on his face. She pulls out a stool and sits down to face him. "Drink?" offers Tig as he turns to get himself a cold beer out of the refrigerator. "Water, coke or pop?" he adds as he remembers she (usually) didn't drink. Phil had put recently stocked up the cooler with different-flavoured drinks, but normally he was the only one who drank them.

"A water, thanks. Still if you have it..." responds Jade.

Tig finds the right bottle and automatically takes off the top before turning around to the bar; and placing the bottle of water out for his favourite girl. He offers another smile at Jade as it stays quiet between them. It suddenly dawns on him that she didn't seem to know what to say. "I'm guessing something's come up since Sunday?" he guesses.

"Well ... yes" she pauses as she takes a sip from her drink. "I wouldn't ask for a favour unless I had to, Alex. I'm not sure where to start..." she states as she starts to look awkward.

"And you're normally so direct, Jade!" responds Tig as he offers her a grin. "What do you need?"

Jade finds herself looking down at the bar, as if she couldn't look Tig in the eye. "Eighteen thousand in cash by eight tomorrow morning" Jade finds herself quietly responding.

Tig goes quiet for a moment; then a thoughtful look crosses his face. "I might be able to find maybe – fourteen-thou - by the end of the day? I could borrow the rest from..." he begins.

Jade looks up at him in consternation. "Shit, no! I wasn't going to ask you for a loan..."

Tig looks taken aback that she had sworn. "You'd be welcome to the money, honey. Interest would be a kiss a day per ten-thousand..."

She gives him a disgusted look and begins to get off her stool as if to leave. Tig finds himself leaning forward and gently putting his hand on her arm to stop her. "Forget the interest, Jade. If you need help, you really are welcome to the dough..."

Jade looks at him and realises that he was actually quite serious. Tig pulls his hand away as if to make a point. She sits herself back on the stool and sighs.

"What you need the money for, sweetheart?" he asks softly.

"It's complicated. I guess you could say a friend of mine's in trouble..." she advises, giving Tig a wary look.

"This "friend" must mean something special to you. Most friends don't loan that sort of money..." responds Tig. He ignores the fact that he had been willing to lend her the money himself – he always thought Jade was more than just a friend.

She offers him a weak smile. "He's a very old and dear friend. And it's really important..."

"Should I be jealous?" he smiles in return.

She shakes her head at him in exasperation. "I really don't need the loan, Alex. I've already got an idea how I can raise the cash ... only I could do with some help..." she admits.

"Now, that wasn't so hard to admit, was it?" responds Tig. "That you need a little help. You only have to ask" he pauses as he notices the awkward look on her face again. "No charge for a ... good friend?"

Jade looks at him for a moment with a thoughtful look on her face. For anybody that didn't know her; that unsettling and direct stare she gave him would have been disconcerting. Tig had gotten used to that look in the few weeks they had been going up to his favourite spot. They'd done a lot of talking, but he still knew there were a lot of things he didn't know about her. In fact, it suddenly dawns on him that he'd probably done a lot more talking than she had; she'd been a good listener.

"Not planning on robbing a bank, I hope?" Tig finds himself finally asking.

"I have a friend who came up with the original idea..." she begins.

"Another friend? I'm definitely getting jealous..." he interrupts.

Jade ignores his comment; she knew Tig well enough to know that he enjoyed still baiting her occasionally. "There's a bike race tonight. The prize is Twenty Thousand Dollars. My friend ... Charlie ... he's going to enter to get me the money. The thing is; he smashed up his own bike last week..."

"A race at night? With such a big prize I'm thinking that this 'bike race' isn't exactly legal..." interrupts Tig with a concerned tone.

"The money's all I'm interested in, Alex. I don't care where it comes from..." she responds.

"You do know those things can get pretty nasty? I know for a fact that illegal bike races pull in big money; mainly from the betting that goes on. But there are pretty-much no rules to some of the events..." he advises.

"Charlie can take care of himself" she responds "He knows what he's getting into..."

"But he needs a bike? I'm thinking that's where the Norton comes in?" Tig asks.

"He's ridden it before; he said it's got a good chance of winning. The idea was to meet him at the Bike-meet early so he could look the bike over and do some work on it..." informs Jade.

"What time?" asks Tig as he is deep in thought. Jade offers him a puzzled look in response. "What time does the race start? And where is it?" he clarifies.

"The meet's just outside Jackson and the main race is at midnight tonight" Jade advises. "Charlie's texted me the exact co-ordinates..."

"Okay, it'll take about three or four hours to get there; depending on the traffic. So we need to have the bike fixed-up latest by eight" He looks at his watch. "Gives us about four hours..."

"Us?" enquires Jade.

"Me and the boys. I'll need a hand souping-up the bike; couldn't do it on my own in that kind of time..." responds Tig.

"Maybe this isn't such a good idea..." replies Jade. Tig had already figured out she was pretty independent and understood it was hard for her to ask for assistance. He could see by the look on her face that she was considering withdrawing her request.

"You'd be doing us the favour, Jade..." he quickly interrupts, jumping in before she completely changed her mind. She raises her eyebrow at him. "The club owes you; that kinda debt's hard to return. You let us do this for you; our obligations paid back..."

"Are you sure?" she asks. "You must be pretty busy..."

"Nah, dead as a doornail right now. The guys would enjoy the challenge..."

She smiles at him in gratitude; and he offers a smile back. He finds himself leaning further forward towards her over the bar; then pulls back as he hears a voice from behind them.

"Jade, sorry to interrupt..." Opie exclaims. Opie had sneaked in the back way and walks up to where the two of them sat from the other end of the bar. Kozik was right behind him.

"No you're not..." mumbles Tig under his breath; with an annoyed look on his face.

Opie ignores him but picks up the fact that Jade looks like she was going to laugh. "I've got bad news, I'm afraid..." finishes Opie. "The axle on your pick-up was damaged. It'll need welding; gonna take a couple of days to get it fixed up..."

Jade's smile disappears at the bad news.

"No worries, Jade" interrupts Tig as he has an idea." We'll borrow the TM's pick-up for tonight. Should be able to fit your bike on the back..."

"I can't ask for..." Jade begins to respond.

"Now, what did I say about you letting us help you out, sweetheart?" Tig responds in a non-argumentative tone. "You don't need to ask; we're gonna sort this out whether you like it or not..."

"What's this about, Tiggy?" Kozik finds himself asking.

"Get the boys in here, Kozik" Tig orders his colleague. "We've got a lot to do and not much time" Kozik offers him a puzzled look but doesn't move. "You want to help Jade out or you gonna waste some of that time?" Tig gives him a hard stare.

Kozik finds himself beaming at Jade for a moment, but then turns around and rushes out of the clubhouse. He can hear where his brothers were still looking over Jade's bike out at the front.

"I need to borrow the guys for the rest of the day, Op..." Tig turns towards Opie; who was also giving him a surprised look. "Could you look after the garage till we close up?"

"Nope" responds Opie. It was Tig's turn to offer him a surprised glance. "Dog and Chuckie can look after things. I know that look, Tig. You're up to something. So I'm in on this, whatever-it-is" he offers a smile to Jade. "Somebody's gotta keep an eye on you boys..."

Jax

It was early evening, and Jax was on his way back to the garage. He'd got a garbled message on his voicemail from his mother, about fifteen minutes earlier. Something about the crew being up-to-something; but none of them had told her what was going on. She'd sounded real pissed; which was not a good sign. She'd also said she was going home early as she had a headache but thought her son should go find out what was happening. Knowing his mother, she'd want a full report as soon as he'd finished and he knew said she'd be waiting at the house for him.

He slows up as he reaches the front gate, and notices that the front of the garage seemed especially busy. The flat-bed pick-up which was normally kept round the back was parked up at the front. The men were standing at the back of the vehicle around a bike, which Chibbs was just covering up. A second bike was already on the back of the pick-up. Jax pulls up to his normal parking spot.

As he turns off the engine and takes off his helmet, he suddenly realises that the figure he at first hadn't recognised was Jade. She had her back turned away and was talking to Opie; but Jax notices that Tig was hovering around her like he normally did with Clay. Only Juice seemed to be missing. Jax walks up to them and picks up on the end of the conversation.

"We've also re-fitted the fuel lines with a new grey-tex line" Opie was explaining to Jade. "It'll take quite a bit of heat from the engine, which means we've managed to max it out..."

"You sure you don't mind us making the mods, Jade?" asks Kozik. Jax picks up on the concern in his voice. "It's gonna make the bike super-charged, but it could end up burning out the engine. It might need a complete overhaul afterwards..."

"As long as it wins the race; it would be worth it" responds Jade.

"We've also fitted some of my special nitro mix..." interrupts Happy, as he points to a small cylinder fixed to the side of the bike. "We can only use it the once, but it'll give the Norton a hell of a kick..."

"Isn't that dangerous, if it isn't mixed right? Normally you can only use nitro on a car's engine..." asks Jade.

The men swap a look of admiration that Jade knew enough about bikes to determine that the nitro could be dangerous if not handled correctly. Tig and Kozik exchange a grin.

"My own recipe!" grins Happy with a proud tone to his voice. "Just for bike's; but it works like a charm. With the new lines able to take the extra heat, it'll beat anything else on the track..."

"What you guys up to?" interrupts Jax. "Evening, Jade..." he acknowledges to the young woman.

"Mr Teller" Jade responds.

"Jax..." admonishers Jax, before turning back to a grinning Opie. "Gemma called me. She seemed concerned something was up..." he continues.

"Aye, she was not in a happy mood..." advises Chibbs. "She gave us all a dirty look before she went home..."

Jax grins and slaps his colleague on the back. "Now I definitely want to know what's going on..."

It goes quiet between the men for a moment as they all look at each other. It is Jade who finally speaks up. "They're helping me out, Mr Teller. I mean, Jax. I hope I haven't got them into any trouble..."

Chibbs, Kozik, Opie, and Happy all speak at once and adamantly deny her allegation. "No way, honey ... Don't need permission ... Owe you a debt... Nothing else to do right now..."

"Okay, okay!" interrupts Jax as he holds up his hand to silence them. "Somebody tell me what's going on?" he demands.

Just at that moment, Juice rushes up to them with what looks like a wad of money in his hands. "Got it, I borrowed it from petty cash..." he begins to say. He suddenly realises that Jax is standing with the others; and abruptly puts the money behind his back with a sheepish look on his face.

"Goof-ball..." mutters Chibbs under his breath and gives Juice a pointed look.

"Op?" Jax turns to his best friend for an answer.

Opie offers him a grin. "We're going to a bike meet; there's a big prize tonight. We've been working on Jade's bike..." he explains as he nods towards the Norton. "Got it all ready..."

"Jade needs the prize-money. Thought we'd all help out; seeing as we owe her..." adds Kozik.

It suddenly dawns on Jax as to why there was a second bike on the back of the pick-up. He takes a step closer to take a better look, and recognises the light racing bike on the back; tucked in behind it was a leather suit and helmet. It belonged to Juice. "Thought you weren't going to do any more racing; you gave it up a few years back when it started to get too dangerous..." he asks Juice.

"It's for a good cause. Thought between the two bikes we had a better chance of winning..." grins Juice as he steels a glance towards Jade and offers her a shy smile. He looks surprised when she offers him a grateful smile back at him.

"Need the entrance fee money, though, for Juicy-boy's bike..." adds Chibbs.

"I'll put the money back tomorrow morning..." promises Juice.

"Well..." begins Jax. The other's all look at him as he pauses. "Seeing it's all for a good cause. Let's just hope the club doesn't need any of you guys tonight..." he grins at them.

"Got it covered, man. Couldn't get hold of Clay; but Bobby and Piney are on their way in. Prospects are staying here too..." adds Kozik.

"We've got it all organised, Jax..." adds Opie. He looks at his colleague as if seeking permission; after all, in Clay's absence Jax was strictly in charge.

Jax takes a long look at the men and notices the anticipation and excitement on their faces. All except Tig, who had remained unusually quiet as he stood beside Jade with a slightly annoyed look. Jade looked a little bemused, until Jax offers her a grin.

"I'm coming with you..." he decides.

"No need to, Jax..." interrupts Tig. "You've got a wife and kids to go home to..." He had gotten more and more morose as each of the boys in turn had insisted on joining the group going to the bike-race. He had originally thought it would just be him and Jade going on the trip, and then Juice had volunteered to race a second bike. The others had all immediately volunteered to go along, and Tig had not been happy.

"Tara's on a late surgery tonight, and Elita's looking after the boys" explains Jax. He grins around at the group of men; most of them were surprised that Jax had also volunteered to join them. "What, you think I'm going home yet? Mom's gonna be waiting for me to report in. I'd rather take a road trip than explain what you guys are up to..."

Chibbs

Chibbs had volunteered to drive the flat-bed pick-up that belonged to the garage, as he hadn't had the time to finish up the repairs on his Harley and it wouldn't be up to making a long journey. Originally, he had thought that Juice would be joining him and Jade in the front of the vehicle, after the young Puerto-Rican had volunteered to take his own racing bike along.

However, one look at Tig's face when Chibbs had made the original suggestion had made him re-think the idea. Whilst they'd been busy upgrading the Norton, he and Happy had swapped knowing looks more than once at the way Tig was so protective of Jade. Tig wouldn't let her out of his sight for more than five minutes. He'd even stood guard outside the bathroom when she'd asked Opie if there was somewhere she could freshen up. Opie had suggested using the bathroom in the Apartment as no-one was staying there at the moment. It was usually cleaner than the one in the club.

Juice had also tried to hang around the young woman; until Chibbs had quietly suggested to him that it would be better if he stayed away or he and Tig would come to blows. Juice had looked upset at first, but after some thought had then realised he'd have a plenty of chances to speak to Jade later on that evening. He'd volunteered to ride on the back of the pick-up; as there wasn't enough room for the four of them in the cab of the vehicle. Juice had found a couple of blankets to keep off the worst of the cool of the evening, and made himself a comfortable but tight place between the two bikes loaded on the back.

Chibbs had found it amusing that his colleagues seemed to act so differently than normal, around the pretty young woman. Opie and Jax had treated her with polite respect; although Opie seemed quite friendly with her. Kozik had grinned at her a lot with that usual inane smile of his, and seemed to find any excuse to talk to her when Tig's back was turned (he thought he was doing it deliberately to annoy Tig). Chibbs had even caught Happy staring at the pretty green-eyed woman on more than one occasion; when he thought no-one was looking.

Chibbs had to admit he liked Jade himself. But it wasn't just because she was attractive. He thought Jade was a smart and independent woman; quite able to look after herself. However, he was a little puzzled as to the way she treated Tig. He was expecting her to be annoyed or pissed at the way he was looking out for her; like he was her personal bodyguard or something. But she had just ignored him most of the time; and hadn't seemed to take any notice of Tig's moping around when he and the other guys had invited themselves along.

It had been quiet between the three of them once they had left the garage; Tig had taken the middle seat and let Jade sit next to the passenger door. Kozik, Happy, Opie and Jax had taken the lead on their Harley's. Juice had been at a few bike-meets in the area previously, and had shown them where the place was on the map in the office before they had left. They had all left their cuts in the clubhouse, and just wore plain jackets.

Jade had texted her friend a few times to update him, but in the main had looked out of the window at the passing scenery and remained quiet. Tig had also been unusually silent; a frown across his brow that he was really not happy about something. Chibbs had decided it was too quiet and eventually put on the local radio to cover the uncomfortable silence between them; and just concentrated on keeping up with the bikes in front.

He was surprised when Jade was the first to break the silence after several hours. She had briefly looked at her watch by the cab light, as it had now gotten dark. "I think we're making pretty good time, Mr ... sorry, Chibbs. Do you think we could stop somewhere?" asks Jade.

"Restroom break?" asks Chibbs. "I think there's a gas station a mile up ahead..."

"I was thinking we might have enough time to stop for something to eat? You've all worked so hard this afternoon. My treat?" she suggests and offers him a smile.

Chibbs looks across at Jade and returns the smile. He ignores Tig's scowl. "The boy's haven't had much since lunchtime, except a few sandwiches Chuckie scrounged up. I think that's a great idea, darlin'..." He pulls out his cell phone one-handed and offers it to Jade. "Give Opie a ring and let him know to stop at the next diner. He's in the speed dial..."

"I'll do it" exclaims Tig and opens out his own phone. Chibbs looks across at Jade in exasperation, and notices the surprise across her face. What the hell was the matter with Tig; he wouldn't even let her ring his own colleagues?

"Jax, yeah. What about we stop for something to eat; we're making good time. I think there's a diner coming up in a few miles..." Tig speaks over the phone.

"My treat..." repeats Jade.

"I know!" snaps Tig, and Jade looks taken aback. He instantly looks contrite and embarrassed, and finds himself looking away from Jade's puzzled stare as he goes back to his conversation on the phone."Sorry, Jax? You heard that? Yeah, see you then..."

It goes back to being awkwardly quiet for the next twenty minutes, until Chibbs pulls into a late-night diner after the Harley's turn off the main highway. Chibbs parks up beside the others, which was a way from the diner as it looked pretty busy. He realised that there was a crowd of people also heading towards the race out by Jackson.

The SAMCRO men all turn off their engines and get off their Harley's. Chibbs turns off the engine to the pick-up, as he hears Juice jump off the back of the pick-up.

"Something up?" Juice shouts out as he heads toward where the Harley's had been parked.

"No, just stopping for something to eat..." responds Kozik.

"Great, I'm starved!" states Juice with a grin on his face.

"I could eat a horse!" adds Happy. "In fact, I could eat a whole herd..."

"We don't have enough time for a five-course lunch, Happy!" exclaims Opie. They all knew that despite the fact that Happy was tall and muscled but as thin as a bean-pole; he could out-eat any of them when he had the opportunity.

"Jade said it's her shout. But we have to make it quick..." informs Jax. He gets out of the way as both Happy and Juice run towards the door of the diner. Neither of them would ever pass up the opportunity for a free meal.

Chibbs is opening the driver door to let himself out, when he pauses as Tig speaks up. "I'll stay here" advises Tig in a sullen tone as he stares out of the front window. "Keep an eye on the bikes."

Chibbs turns to Tig in surprise; it was the last thing he was expecting. He thought Tig would be coming with him and Jade and be watching her back as he had been doing for the last few hours. "Not hungry, Tig?" he asks in puzzlement.

Tig doesn't reply. Chibbs looks across at Jade and they swap an exasperated look. As Chibbs starts to get down from the vehicle, it suddenly dawns on him that Jade wasn't getting out. He steps down and then turns around with a query on his face.

"I'll catch up with you in a few minutes, Chibbs" Jade advises. Chibbs got the impression she wasn't looking for any arguments, and finds himself automatically closing the door. However, he had left the window open on the driver side. He couldn't help but overhear as Jade started to talk to Tig as he walks towards the diner

"What the hell's the matter with you, Tig?" Jade's tone is Irate.

Chibbs finds himself grinning. There was one woman who sounded real pissed. He guessed she'd had enough of his colleague's sulking and wished her luck in giving Tig a piece of her mind.

Jade

"What the hell's the matter with you, Tig?" asks Jade. She tried to keep the exasperation from her tone, but had just about had enough of Alex Trager's sullen mood. Plus he had been acting like her own private protector and had been hovering around her all afternoon. She had felt uncomfortable at how close he had stayed near her; but had tried to ignore his actions until now.

"Nothing wrong with me..." huffs Tig as he continues to stare out the front window. He felt humiliated that he had snapped at Jade earlier and found he couldn't look here in the eye.

Jade sighs to herself, and then leans down to pick up the rucksack she had placed under the seat, and puts it across her shoulder. As she begins to open the door, she couldn't help herself from making a sarcastic parting comment. "I'll bring you back a kid's meal; seeing as you're acting like a four-year old in a sulk. Unless, of course, you take that stupid look off your face and you'd like to join the rest of us adults for something to eat..."

She steps down from the pick-up, and completely misses the sudden grin that crosses Tig's face. She is just about to slam the door shut behind her.

"Wait up, Jade!" exclaims Tig. She picks up on the apologetic tone to his voice and turns around and looks up at where he peered down at her from the front seat. "Sorry, babe" adds Tig with a contrite look on his face.

"I am NOT your babe..." Jade states angrily. If she didn't know better, she could have sworn there was a red flush of humiliation on Alex Trager's face. She is further taken by surprise as he looks away in embarrassment from her angry stare.

"Okay, I've been an asshole" admits Tig. "And I'm really, really sorry that I snapped at you..."

"Why are you behaving like this, Alex?" Jade asks softly; beginning to lose her anger. She could see that something was on Tig Trager's mind.

Tig offers her a sad grin; he sometimes forgot that Jade could be pretty direct. "I thought it'd be just you and me going tonight. Then Juice invites himself along and the other guys all got in on the act..." he begins to explain.

"I appreciate that Juice offered to race his bike. It's sweet of him. And the others all want to help; you said yourself they felt they owe me..." she pauses as she notices the look on Tig's face. She could see he agreed with her, but still wasn't sure why he was acting so weird. "There's something else..." she guesses.

Tig looks at her with a steely gaze, and she picks up that he was still angry about something. "I don't like the way the guys are treating you, swee ... Jade..." he admits.

"But they're your friends..." she asks in puzzlement. "I don't understand..."

"You probably haven't noticed; but I have. Opie and Jax are okay; I think they like and ... respect ... you. The others ... they all treat you like you're available ... pussy..." he pauses as he realises he hasn't said what he wanted very well. He pulls his hand through his hair in frustration; he begins to think that he probably shouldn't have said anything.

Jade looks bewildered for a moment; but then sudden comprehension crosses her face. "You're jealous!" she exclaims in surprise.

Tig looks totally embarrassed. All he can do is nod but he keeps his head bowed as if he didn't want to watch her reaction to his confession. "I guess I have been a bit ... overprotective. It's just I don't like the thought of them ... I mean ..." he tries to explain. He goes quiet as he realises he was digging himself into a deeper hole.

"I don't need or want you watching my back like a jealous boyfriend, Alex" she states in a hard tone. "Because you're not my boyfriend; and I can take care of myself. I appreciate you and your ... friends ... helping me out. But I am not anyone's "pussy", you got that? If you or any of your colleagues try anything with me; they'll find themselves knocked out for the rest of the night..."

Tig looks back at her in surprise and stares at her for one long moment. "Yes, ma'am. You want me to pass the message along to the guys?" he asks.

Jade turns around and leans herself against the pick-up; she closes her eyes as if trying to get her anger under control. "I don't know why I always seem to lose my temper around you, Alex" she states softly.

She opens her eyes again as Tig moves forward and peers his head out of the open passenger window and smiles across at her. "Yeah, I do seem to have that affect on you, don't I? You know, we could just bale..." suggests Tig. Jade looks at him with a puzzled glance. "Chibb's left the keys in the ignition" he explains. "We could just leave and head out for the bike-meet on our own..."

"I don't think your friends would be very happy..." responds Jade. She wasn't sure if Tig was joking or not. "And they did work hard on the bike. What about we just go join them for something to eat?" she offers Tig a small smile.

Tig returns a disappointed look; and Jade realises he had been quite serious about leaving the others behind. " 'Kay, let me lock up first" he finally agrees.

After he locks up and made sure the bikes were secure on the back of the vehicle, they walk together towards the nearby diner. Tig carefully keeps his distance from Jade, as it dawns on him that he had been crowding her all day. The diner has a glass front, and Tig rolls his eyes when he notices the rest of the guys had found a window seat and were all grinning at the two of them. Juice and Kozik enthusiastically wave to them as they walk up to the front door.

Tig automatically steps ahead to open the door for Jade. "You know, I don't mind if you do lose your temper with me sometimes" Tig suddenly states. Jade pauses for a moment and looks at him in puzzlement. Tig grins at her again. "You were so angry you called me Tig!" he exclaims.

Charlie

The guy was dangerous. All of the crew picked up on that as soon as Jade had called out to him in recognition. As the man turned around at his name being called, they could tell there was something tough about Jade's "friend" Charlie. He was standing in front of a van that was parked a little way from the main crowd at the Bike-meet.

The man was in his early thirties, but his stance was that of an older man. As if he'd seen too much in life and very little surprised him. There was a small scar on his forehead that stood out in the bright moonlight. The guy was thin and muscled; and almost as tall as Happy. More hair, though. Despite the fact he wore normal denim jacket and jeans, the crew-cut on his black hair still gave him a military air. His eyes were hazel, and had a hard glint in them at first; his face was one of those that gave nothing away. His eyes softened as soon as he spotted Jade and a smile crossed his face. Tig got the distinct impression he was very pleased to see the young woman; and he found it very hard not to reach forward and pull Jade away.

"Jade!" exclaimed the man. He stepped forward, and before she knew it she was being picked up in a bear hug. She found herself being lifted up off her feet and swung around. Tig was on the point of taking a step forward in anger; but found a hand touch his arm for a moment. He realised it was Chibbs; who was trying to tell him that he needed to cool it.

"Charlie! Put me down!" Jade exclaims in irritation. She punched him in the chest; it wasn't a soft punch either. Tig was not the only member of the crew finding himself wincing at the punch.

The man called Charlie gingerly puts Jade down back on her feet and takes a step back as he rubs his chest. However, there is still a smile on his face. "Still got that vicious right-hook I see, ma'am..."

"I'll "ma'am" you in a minute, Sergeant!" Jade laughs.

"It's Lieutenant now, ma ... Jade..." Charlie responds.

"Better pay?" asks Jade with a touch of laughter still in her voice.

"Still got the two ex-wives to pay for; they just get more money now. What do you think?" he responds.

"Still broke because you waste the rest on chasing other women. Same old; same old..." Jade replies. To the men standing behind her, it sounded like it was a conversation the two of them had had before; some sort of joke between them. Charlie leans forward and whispers something to Jade, and she grins at him in response. None of them were close enough to pick up what he had said to her.

They are all surprised when Jade reaches forward and gives the man a proper hug. "I've missed you too..." Jade states softly as she then pulls away.

Charlie looked more surprised than embarrassed. He then notices the men standing behind Jade and the hard glint returns to his eyes as he deliberately looks the group over. Tig returned the man's hard stare with one of his own.

"None of that, Charlie..." asks Jade softly as she notices the sudden tension in the air.

A young man in his early twenties step's out from behind the van; as if in silent support of his colleague. "You remember Archie, from the motor-pool?" introduces Charlie. "He volunteered to come along and check out the bike..."

"Ma'am" acknowledges the youngest man in the group. Jade nods back to him in greeting, but looked momentarily uncomfortable.

Jax and Opie had been standing to one side to observe the conversation, and swap a glance at the way the young man had greeted Jade. The way he has said "ma'am" was not one of polite respect but the way a soldier would greet a superior. He'd even raised his arm slightly as if he was going to offer a salute.

"You gonna introduce your ... new friends?" Charlie asks.

Jade picks up on the deliberate way he had paused and gives him a brief annoyed look. She turns around to stand beside her friend, and he casually starts to put his arm around her shoulder but she slaps his hand away. He doesn't seem to be put out but there is a smile on his lips.

Before Jade can respond Jax steps forward and offers out his hand in greeting. "Jax Teller" he introduces himself.

The man looked Jax up and down as if weighing him-up; or assessing a threat. He reluctantly reaches forward and returns the handshake after Jade silently digs him in the chest with her elbow.

"Charlie..." he returns the greeting. As they drop hands, he deliberately looks around at the other men.

"This is Opie. That's Tig, Happy, Kozik and Chibbs" introduces Jax as he nods towards his colleagues. "Juice has gone to put down the money for the main race..."

"He the other guy racing with me?" asks Charlie. "Jade said he's got some experience at these races. I need to catch up with him before the race; to discuss our ... tactics ..."

"He'll be here in a few minutes..." responds Opie.

It goes uncomfortably quiet between the two groups for a moment. "Guess we'd better look those bikes over first; race is in less than an hour..." interrupts Archie finally.

BH

Nobody had noticed the black man who had followed them from the diner. The traffic from the diner to the bike-meet had been pretty busy, and he was professional enough to always keep at least two or three cars between him and his target. It wasn't hard to pick out the Teller-Morrow Pick-up at a distance, either, and it had made his job quite easy.

The man walks from where he parked his car; well away from where his target had parked up to another vehicle and the four Harley's. He had stayed amongst the main crowd of people and kept his head down. He now had a baseball over his bald head and the collar of his coat zipped up to his neck, so he couldn't easily be recognised. However, he had carefully and professionally still kept his distance as he had observed the bunch of men and one woman who were now off-loading the two bikes.

He finally turns away to find a quiet space, and pulls out his cell phone as he uses the quick-dial.

"Yeah, it's me..." he states. He listens to the other person for a few seconds, and then abruptly interrupts. "Look, just shut up for a minute. The tip was wrong; the guy stopped working there months ago..." he goes quiet again as he listens to his colleague. "I've got something more important for us to deal with. You'll never guess who I spotted coming out of the diner..." The man finds himself grinning into the phone. "Alexander-fucking-Trager" He pulls the cell phone away from his ear for a few seconds as the man at the other end starts swearing. "Just get the guys down here. I'll text you the co-ordinates. No, I don't care if there's a bounty still on his head. I owe that bastard big time..."

Rigged

Archie and Juice had hit it off straight away; both were young and enthusiastic about bikes and the forthcoming race. It turned out that Archie was also a bit of computer geek; in fact he and Juice had already chatted on-line in the past. He and Juice had swapped stories as they had both given the bikes their last work-over.

Chibbs had gone for a walk and had come back with bottles of beer for everybody; he'd even got a bottled orange-juice for Jade. Somewhere along the line he'd picked up a couple of groupies; and he and Happy were chatting to the two young girls as they had hung around where the other guys were checking the bikes.

Opie and Jax had gone with Charlie to take a quick look over the bike course; before the race started (Charlie had called it a "reckie" which had definitely confirmed he had some sort of military background). Kozik had disappeared to see if he could find a decent spot from where to watch the race. That left Tig and Jade alone as they sat down on the back of the garage's pick-up and watched Juice and Archie go over the bikes

Charlie and Jax finally walk up to where they sat in a comfortable silence. Jax nods towards Juice and catches Happy's eye as if to call them over. Happy claps Chibbs on the arm and they both start to walk towards them.

"Turns out some bastard put a load of broken glass and nails under the mud right at the end of the track..." explains Jax as they all gather around the end of the pick-up.

"Deliberate" states Charlie as he notices the look Jade gives him. "If you didn't know it was there you'd probably lose a tyre and go head-over-ass over your bike" he notices the irritated look that Jade gives him and grins back at her; he'd forgotten that she usually didn't like foul or bad language.

"Opie's giving the course a closer look. It looked too suspicious if all three of us were checking it out..." adds Jax.

"Nasty" states Tig. "Sounds like someone's trying to rig the race..."

"There's a safe way through right at the end of the track; but only if you know what you're looking for..." confirms Charlie.

"The betting here can get pretty heavy" muses Jax. "I'd guess someone's relying on that rigged part of the track to get rid of the competition..."

Chibbs grins at Jax as a sudden idea hits him. "Could be to our advantage; now that we know about it. It would be such a shame for them if the Norton won the race. Whoever put in all that effort would lose a lot of money..."

"What were the odds for our friend here?" asks Happy. He'd guessed the real reason why Chibbs had disappeared earlier; to put down a bet.

"Six-to-One for the Norton" grins Chibbs; looking slightly awkward that Happy had guessed where he had gone earlier. "Juicy-boy still has a bit of a name round here; his odds were four-to-one..."

"Better odds mean more money. We need the Norton to win the race..." adds Happy in a husky voice. There is a calculating look in his eyes as he realises that there would probably be enough time for him to put his own bet. In fact, he had enough cash on him to spread a few bets around...

They turn around as they hear Opie approach behind them. "Rest of the track looked okay, far as I could tell." he confirms.

Jade had been silently moving her gaze from one man to another as she had followed their conversation. "Could there be any other dangers on the track?" she suddenly asks Opie. He picks up on the concern in her voice.

"I'd guess the glass and nails were dug into the mud last minute; to avoid anybody else finding it" Opie tries to re-assure her. "I doubt there's anything else..."

"But we can't be sure" muses Jade. She turns to Charlie. "It's too risky. I don't think you or Juice should race..."

Charlie looks taken aback. The SAMCRO men are stunned into silence. Happy opens his mouth for a moment, as if going to object; but then changes his mind at the determined look on Jade's face. Charlie was the only one who knew Jade well enough to know how stubborn she could get when she had that look on her face.

"What about the rest of the money?" asks Charlie. "It has to be all there by eight-thirty tomorrow morning or they'll lose the..." he goes quiet as he realises that the SAMCRO men are avidly listening to the conversation.

"I'll find it another way..." she responds in a tone that told him she wasn't going to accept any arguments.

However, it is Juice who makes the final decision. "I'm still game" he interrupts loudly as he takes a step towards Charlie. "You?"

Charlie picks up the challenge in Juice's voice, and responds before Jade can say anything further. "If you're still up for being my wing-man, then this could still work. You keep any competition off my back and I'll ride right through that bastard-trap!"

Juice offers out his hand. "Done!" he grins. They shake hands firmly.

Charlie turns towards Jade, and notices the heated look in her eyes. Tig grins in silence from where he is still sitting on the back of the pick-up next to Jade, as if waiting for her to erupt in anger at her "friend". Charlie abruptly leans forward and kisses Jade on the forehead before she can say anything. "No arguments, Jade. We're doing this..." he and Juice walk back towards the bikes with a swagger in their step.

It is Jax who interrupts the silence that descends amongst the rest of the group. "Chibbs, get rid of that pussy" he orders. "Don't trust anybody here. We all need to keep our eyes peeled for trouble..."

Jade is still angry but thoughtful from the sudden change of events, but picks up on the way Jax was dishing out orders. Although she was still worried that Charlie and Juice were taking a risk; she also realised that the SAMCRO men were preparing for trouble afterwards.

"I'll go find Kozik and update him" volunteers Happy as he hurriedly walks away. Chibbs also heads out to get rid of the two women, who were watching the group of men in curiosity.

"I think we should split as soon as we get the prize money..." suggests Opie. "There are going to be some real pissed-off people looking for payback once we win the race..."

"I've got an idea about that..." responds Jax as he and Opie begin to walk away.

It goes quiet between Tig and Jade. It suddenly dawns on Tig that he had drawn the short straw; he had been left to deal with a very irate green-eyed young woman who looked like she was about to explode. He steels a glance at her and then looks away as he notices the way she glares at Charlie's retreating back.

"Not one fucking work" Jade's tone is at the best irate.

"Who, me?" smiles Tig. "Wouldn't think of it, darlin'" It was on the very tip of his tongue to tell her that he thought she was just so-fucking beautiful and sexy when she got pissed. For a change, he managed to keep his mouth shut.

He casually gets himself off the back of the pick-up and stretches. "If we're going to leave here in a hurry, I'd best go get a piss ... I mean, take a leak first. You okay here for a bit?"

Jade doesn't respond as he saunters away. However, he could swear blind he could hear her muttering under her breath. He only caught the words "testosterone filled" and "dicks."

Thief

Opie barged his way through the crowd to where Kozik and Happy stood at the front of the crowd. They'd found a good spot on top of a slight slope, that was located just near the end of the race track. It gave them a clear view of the last half of the track, which was illuminated with floodlights. A few people began to protest as Opie made a space for Jax, Chibbs and Jade to follow. However, not many people tended to argue with Opie. He was a head taller than most people in the crowd, and a few withering looks from him tended to shut anybody up who made any protests.

Kozik greets his colleagues, and moves to one side so that Jade could have a clear view over the track. She still had her rucksack across her shoulders. He offered her his usual inane grin, but she just glared at him in return. He offered a puzzled look to Chibbs, who just returned his grin and mouthed "don't ask".

"Race should start in a few minutes" confirms Opie as he looks at his watch.

"Where's Tig?" asks Kozik, suddenly realising that someone was missing.

"Went to take a p... leak" confirms Happy, where he stood just behind Jade.

"Might be a while..." confirms Chibbs, who had found out where the facilities were earlier that evening. Kozik offers him a perplexed look. "Toilets are right over the other side of the parking lot. Very picturesque..."

"Maybe he shouldn't have gone on his own..." adds Jade. "He should have caught up with us by now..." The anger had gone from her voice and she sounded a little worried.

"Tiggy can take care of himself, doll" adds Kozik; swapping a smile with Chibbs.

It goes quiet between them, even though the surrounding crowd was noisy. Despite the fact that Opie and Happy were constantly looking around for any trouble, the surrounding group of people begins to get denser and begins to push closer to the people at the front.

A young, thin man who wasn't more than a teenager stood just behind the group. His clothes were dirty and ragged, and he warily eyes Jade's back. He suddenly takes a step forward and begins to raise his right hand. He finds his hand caught in a tight grip that brings tears to his eyes.

"Not here, boy" states a hoarse voice. The teenager looks up into the eyes of Happy. He finds himself squeaking in pain as the tall, bald-headed man tightens his grip and almost pulls the boy off his feet.

Jade and the others turn around at the dangerous tone to Happy's voice. Jade has a surprised look on her face. "Let go!" protests the young man. "I weren't doin' nothing!"

"You were just about to try and snatch the young lady's rucksack. Don't lie, kid!" Happy states as he virtually shakes the teenager.

"Okay, okay. You got me. Let me go!" the young boy begins to shake in terror as he looks around at the tough-looking men surrounding the woman; he hadn't noticed them before. The boy suddenly realises that although the woman was extremely pretty, he had made the biggest mistake of his life trying to steal from this woman who appeared to have such powerful protectors with her. He looks around at the adjacent crowd as if seeking help; but most of them ignore the group or look away.

"Jade?" asks Happy as he keeps his grip on the boy.

Jade suddenly realises that Happy was offering her the decision of what to do with the young man. She looks at the teenager who looked like he is about to cry. He can't meet her eyes as she stares at him for a long moment; and finds himself bowing his head in shame.

The quiet is interrupted as they hear the distant sound of a gun going off, followed by the sound of the crowd cheering as the race starts at the other end of the track.

"Very young and very stupid" she states; her tone like ice. She turns her back towards the track as if checking to see if they could see the race yet; and it didn't matter to her what happened to the boy.

"Oh god!" whispers the boy to himself, as it suddenly dawns on him that he was really in deep shit.

Happy can't hide the astonished look on his face. He had fully expected Jade to ask him to let the young man go. He looks across to Opie, Jax, Kozik and Chibbs who all look a little taken aback. It suddenly dawns on Happy that he didn't, in fact, know what to do with the teenager he still had a hold of.

"Happy?" Jade suddenly interrupts his thoughts; she didn't turn around from where she was intensely still watching the track.

"Yes, Jade?" he responds automatically.

"It would an awful lot of trouble to find somewhere to bury his body, wouldn't it?" she asks with a casual note in her voice this time.

The teenager starts to silently cry; he couldn't help it. Opie and Jax abruptly turn away; trying their best to hide the smile on their faces.

"Yes, ma'am" grins Happy evilly, as he finally catches on.

"What would you suggest?" responds Jade.

"I dunno. Stealings the worst type of crime; lead's to all sorts of nasty things. Maybe if you'd let me have some personal time with him, I could persuade him not to do it again. Permanently..." he responds.

"Taking a hand should do it..." adds Jax, covering his hand with his mouth as if he was trying damn hard not to laugh out loud.

"I always prefer something a bit more personal" adds Opie. He coughs suddenly. If the boy had not been on the verge of fainting, he would have realised that Opie was coughing to cover up his smothered laughter.

"Och, Opie..." adds Chibbs cheerfully. "The family jewels are always a good bet..."

The teenager squeaks in total terror, but unexpectedly finds his hand is let loose. Happy looms over him. "Get!" he states.

The young boy turns around and flees for his very life; tears still running down his face. He is so terrified that he never hears the laughter following him.

Happy shakes his head to himself. "Kids these days..."

"Aye, there's one young man likely not do to that again in a hurry..." adds Chibbs.

"I don't think he'll stop running for a long, long time..." Jade states as the turns back around. For a moment she watches as the young man pushes through the crowd to get away, and then sighs to herself.

The sound of the crowd gets louder, as they can hear the faint sound of revving racing bikes. They all turn back around as if expecting to see the race. Happy finds himself taking a step forward so he is hovering right behind Jade.

"Must be something precious in that rucksack of yours, the way you keep it close..." Happy suddenly comments.

"You have no idea..." responds Jade quietly.

"Yeah, well. You should trust us enough to watch your back, sweetheart. Next time, just ask us when you need some handy guards around..." states Happy.

Jade turns around and stares up at Happy; there is an astonished look on her face. He returns her stare with a wide grin. A look of comprehension crosses her face as it finally dawns on her that the bald-headed man had guessed what she carried in her rucksack. She abruptly reaches forward and lands a light kiss on his cheek as if to say thank you; before she turns back around to watch the oncoming race.

None of Happy's brothers noticed that his cheeks had gone a shade of rosy pink. It was covered up by the pleased smirk he had on his face.

Eureka

Kozik can't help the worried frown that crosses his brow. He had his cell to his ear, and all he could hear was the ringing of the other phone at the end. It was the third time he had tried to ring Tig's phone in the last few minutes. As the phone once again goes to voicemail, he swaps a troubled look with Happy.

"We should go find him..." Kozik finally decides. He notices the look that Jade gives him, as she is momentarily distracted from where she is watching the race. "Knowing Tiggy, he's just found some pussy..." He pauses as he notices Jade raise her eyebrow at him; for some odd reason she looked unhappy at his comment. "... Just kidding, Jade" he finishes. "Tig's probably just got lost in the crowd..."

"Come on, Juicy-Boy!" Chibbs suddenly shouts; as he and the rest of the group finally start to see the race approaching in the distance.

Jade turns back to watch the race. The Norton was a close fourth, but had already begun to overtake the third bike. Juice's bike was to his right and just behind Charlie; as if blocking anybody else from overtaking them. It was going to be a close thing; and the shouting from the crowd reflected the anticipation of an exciting finish to the race.

Kozik and Happy turn away towards the crowd behind them, and head out. Happy has a last-minute thought and briefly looks back. Opie had just turned around to watch them leave; and Happy silently points towards Jade's rucksack as if asking him to watch her back. Opie moves to where Happy had stood previously. He nods towards Happy in confirmation that he would take over guard-duty. Jade is totally oblivious.

The two men find they can't talk above the noise of the crowd as they push their way through. They get a few dirty looks from some of the onlookers, but Happy only had to give them a hard stare to shut them up before they can mouth any protests. As they finally get towards the edge of the crowd, it goes quieter.

Kozik has a hard time keeping up with Happy; who sets up a fast pace with his long legs. They were virtually out of the crowded area; but had to keep to the temporary path as they headed towards the distant car park. The area either side of the path was muddy and there was barely enough room for them to walk side-by-side.

"What was that about the rucksack?" asks Kozik, breaking the silence between them.

"You haven't guessed?" grins Happy.

Kozik pauses as if waiting for Happy to say more; but then has an annoyed look on his face as he realises that his colleague had every intention of keeping quiet. "Just tell me, Hap" sighs Kozik. "I'm not in the mood for guessing games..."

Happy briefly looks around to make sure that no-one else was in the immediate area and could overhear their conversation. "Gotta be cash" he states quietly. "For whatever she needs for tomorrow. The prize money's just to make up the balance..."

"Hell, that must be a lot of dough..." states Kozik; as a thoughtful look crosses his own face and he tries to calculate how much money Jade's rucksack would actually hold.

Happy gives him an irate glance; and then takes another look around as if checking no-one else was interested in their conversation. "Ssssh!" he whispers under his breath. "Not so fucking loud!"

It goes quite for the next few minutes as they start to make their way across the car park. There were very few people hanging around the various vehicles. However, a tall and muscled man suddenly steps out from between two cars and almost knocks into Kozik as if he was in a hurry.

"Hey, watch it!" exclaims Kozik. Happy comes to an abrupt halt alongside his colleague.

The moustached man has a hoodie over his head, but turns towards them with an annoyed look. He quickly looks them over before turning aside and carrying on his way; not even offering any apology.

Kozik swears under his breath, and begins to start walking again. However, he stops when he realises that Happy had not moved. He turns around and notices that his own bald-headed colleague was watching the retreating figure with a thoughtful look on his face.

"Hap?" asks Kozik.

"I know that prick" muses Happy to himself. He seems to shake himself from his reverie and begins to start walking again. Kozik begins to follow him; but is brought to an abrupt halt as Happy suddenly stops again. "Eureka!" mumbles Happy, as if a thought had suddenly hit him.

"What?" asks Kozik. He is totally puzzled by Happy's behaviour; and "Eureka" wasn't the type of word he usually tended to use.

Happy turns back again; as if trying to seek where the stranger who had knocked into them had vanished too. He begins to walk pretty fast towards where the man was just disappearing between where various trucks and vans were parked up.

"Happy!" states an annoyed Kozik as he runs to catch up. "What the fuck's going on!"

"Tig ever tell you about the Eureka run a few years back?" asks Happy as he slows down. He had slowed down not only so that Kozik could keep in step; but also to keep his distance from the figure he was warily following.

"I heard about it" confirms Kozik. "Bobby said that he keeps his "bad boy" bike out of Tiggy's sight; just in case he decides to make Bobby keep his promise to leave it at the side of the road..."

"Not that part. Tig was picked up by some bounty hunters..." advises Happy.

"Yeah, so?" confirms Kozik. "I heard Piney and Jax mounted a rescue party..."

"The guy who almost knocked you down? I only got a glimpse of his face" confirms Happy; Kozik picked up on the serious tone to his voice. "But I'm pretty sure he was one of those B.H. bastards..."

"Are you sure?" asks Kozik.

Happy nods. "I never forget an asshole."

Déjà-Vu

Despite the fact that Tig knew he was in deep trouble; he couldn't help the feeling of déjà vu that swamped him. He was tied up with his hands behind his back and his feet were bound together with duct tape. Once again, he was being held in the back of a van; he was propped up between the van's seats with his back against the cab. This van had large windows to the rear, but he couldn't see much out into the darkness.

He had just finished taking a leak in the very primitive facilities; when a couple of heavy-built guys had jumped him from behind. He had been momentarily stunned as one of them had given him a viscous knock across his forehead. It had not knocked him out completely, but it had disorientated him enough for the men to bundle him up and rush him out of the men's toilets before any witnesses turned up. They'd stuck duct tape over his mouth as well; before he could shout for help.

The third man had been keeping watch outside, and had led the other two men towards a nearby van. They had silently and quickly driven away; but had stopped only a few minutes later at a convenient parking slot that was well away from the main crowds.

The two men who sat to the rear of the van had not said anything to him; and waited patiently whilst the third man had stayed in the front of the van. Tig finds himself raising his eyebrow at the two men. For some very peculiar reason, he thought he knew these guys from somewhere. He just couldn't put his finger on it...

It remains quiet for at least another ten minutes. Then there is an abrupt knock on the back of the van. One of the men quickly opens the locked back, and lets in a black man who is wearing a hood and coat. He looks at Tig with disgust, before closing the door behind him. He takes a seat at the end and makes himself comfortable.

"Remember us, Trager?" he asks.

Tig finds himself shaking his head in bewilderment; he still wasn't sure where he recognised these guys from. Maybe the knock on his head had done more damage than he thought.

The black man swaps an irate look with his two colleagues. One of them abruptly leans forward and sharply pulls off the duct fact from his face; catching some of his skin and beard so that he finds himself wincing.

"Shout all you want, Trager" states the black man. "Nobody'll hear you out here..."

"You gentlemen mind telling me what this is about?" asks Tig with a smile on his face; although he was genuinely puzzled as to why these guys had kidnapped him.

One of the other men abruptly slaps Tig hard across the face. "That's for calling us fag's..." he states in anger.

Tig grins as he deliberately looks from one man to another. He finally remembers where he had met these assholes; these were the three bounty hunters who had kidnapped him a few years ago. He was grinning because he recalled how much he'd enjoyed egging them on; so that in the end the middle guy who had just slapped him had knocked him out of their van.

"You do know the charge in Oregon got squashed?" Tig states.

"Not here for the bounty this time" states the black man; his anger showing on his face.

"Don't have any money" adds Tig.

"Fuck that!" states the third man; Tig remembered this was the guy who he'd guessed had been a quarter-back.

"Do you fucking know how much it cost to get that motel room repaired?" adds the black man. "And to keep the owner from pressing any charges? I have every intention of taking that money from your hide..."

Tig grins at them again. "C'mon, guys. No need for this! I thought we were best pals after our little adventure together..."

"You fucking..." begins the black man as he reaches forward. He pauses as he notices that Tig had raised his eyebrow as his gaze had suddenly shifted to the back of the van. There was an amused but bewildered look on their prisoner's face that reminded him of something. The exact-same look on his face that he had seen somewhere before; just before Trager's colleagues had ploughed a flat-bed truck through their motel room.

However, the thought dawns too late as both doors to the back of the van are abruptly pulled opened. Tig smile gets broader s as Happy and Kozik stand there with their handguns covering the three men who held him hostage. Tig had noticed Happy's face peer silently through the back window a few seconds before. Neither Kozik nor Happy have to say anything as they both give warning looks to the three very-surprised bounty hunters not to move.

Tig silently pulls himself forward until he is sitting on the edge of the vehicle. Kozik hurriedly cuts through the plastic bonds that held his hands behind his back. He takes the knife from his colleague to cut through the bindings at his feet; as Kozik takes a step back to keep a wary eye on the three men still in the van.

Tig notices that his own handgun and knife where tucked up under the seat and quickly retrieves them.

He can't help it as he turns back around to confront the very-pissed-off bounty hunters. "Well, guys. It's been fun. Have to do this again sometime" he laughs as he slams the van doors behind him.

The Argument

The three men finally pull up from where they had sprinted across the car park; as they take a breather for a few seconds. They were now far enough away from the bounty hunters van that it would be difficult for their pursuers to follow them. In the distance they can hear the faint sound of the crowd cheering; and it dawns on them that the race had finally finished.

"Thanks, Hap" Tig finally gasps as he begins to get his breath back. "Things were getting a bit tricky back there..."

Happy just silently nods in acknowledgement as he puts the gun in his hand back into his holster.

"Trust you to run into those bastards..." interrupts Kozik. There was an annoyed tone to his voice that he and Happy had found themselves having to rescue their colleague.

Tig ignores him. "What about the driver?" he suddenly asks Happy.

"Went for a pee and had an accident with a car door" grins Happy. He neglected to mention that he had been the one to knock the man's head into a nearby vehicle when he had been conveniently taking a leak. "He seems to have dropped his car keys" he adds as he pulls out a bunch of key from his pocket and throws them into a nearby ditch.

"Should keep them off our back for a while" adds Kozik.

"Owe you one..." Tig states as he offers a grin to his two rescuers.

"Yeah, you fucking do!" agrees Kozik.

Tig offers him a scowl as he realises that Kozik was mad at him. "What's your problem, Kozik?"

Kozik doesn't say anything. He abruptly turns around and starts to march off towards where they had left their colleagues watching the race. Tig and Happy automatically begin to follow him; Tig has a slightly perplexed look on his face.

"Okay, I get it. You're pissed at me. What did I do now?" Tig finally asks.

Kozik pauses as he realises that Tig was actually trying to clear the air between them. "All you had to do was go take a simple piss. Couldn't even do that right. I had to waste my time saving your balls again..." he grumbles to himself.

Tig abruptly has an insight into why Kozik was angry. "And you're angry because you had to leave a certain green-eyed woman watching the race with the others?" Kozik just glares at him. Tig offers him a smile. "Forget it, Kozik. She's not your type..."

"And what the fuck would you know what my type is, Tiggy?" responds Kozik. He turns back around and they continue heading towards the distant crowd of people.

It goes uneasily quiet between them, until Kozik's cell rings. He pulls out the phone and answers it when he recognises the number. "Yeah, Jax?"

The other two stay silent as Kozik listens to the response. "We won!" he advises his colleagues. "What? Sure, we've got Tiggy safe and sound" he pauses and gives his colleague another irate look. "Long story... we'll meet you there in ten..." he responds and puts his cell away.

"Jax had concerns there might be trouble collecting the prize money. He wants us to meet him at the winning table the other side of the race track. We're to be the escort..." he explains to his colleagues and turns around to lead the way.

It is quiet for another five minutes as they start to make their way through the dispersing crowd. "We quits now, Tiggy?" Kozik suddenly asks.

"What for?" responds Tig; not quite sure what Kozik was on about.

"Shit, you fucking know! I just saved your ass back there; that makes up for pulling that joke on you..." advises Kozik.

"No way, man..." argues Tig. "I owe Happy just as much as you for getting me out of the shit back there. I still think you owe me big time..."

"What the hell do I have to do to make us even?" groans Kozik.

"Are you two still fucking fighting over that?" interrupts an irate Happy. He was beginning to get annoyed at the way the two men were acting. It goes quiet between Tig and Kozik as they both pick up on Happy's dangerous tone of voice.

"For a start, Kozik, you can keep away from Jade..." Tig suddenly states.

"She's not your old lady, man..." argues Kozik. "You've been acting like she's your own personal property all day today..."

"Jade's the type of woman no man can own. Or tame, for that matter..." Happy suddenly states. Kozik and Tig swap a surprised look that Happy had shared this insight. "And if you two don't shut up, I'll bang your two thick heads together..." he adds as he steps forward between the two of them and takes the lead.

Winners

"You took an awful risk blocking that second bike from overtaking Charlie" states a concerned Archie as he leans onto the end of the flat-bed pick up.

Juice grins as he looks up at his new friend. He was seated in the side of the flat-bed , and had his legs outstretched across the backboard. Jade was silently working over his leg; she had already cut through his leather trousers on his right leg so she could see the wound. The gash was deep and still bleeding; but luckily no major artery had been cut. She had just finished putting in a couple of stitches, and then sprayed it with an anti-septic spray before starting to tightly bandage up the wound.

Opie and Chibbs were standing a way off as they were both warily keep an eye on the surrounding crowd as people were making their way back to their vehicles.

"You saw that?" asks Juice.

"Yeah, I stood up the roof of my van and had some binocs so I could see the race clearly..." responds Archie. "You would have come second if that bastard hadn't knocked you off your bike..."

"You think?" asks Juice with a note of pride in his voice. However, he was finding it difficult to concentrate on what Archie was saying to him. Jade was still working over his leg; and he was finding it very distracting her being this near to him. He kept finding himself glancing at where her blond hair fell over her face as she bent over the side of the vehicle.

She looks up as if she had sensed Juice had been watching her. Juice looks away in embarrassment for a moment. "Is the leg hurting?" she smiles at him.

"No, It's fine..." Juice vehemently denies. Actually, his leg was throbbing like crazy. But he wasn't going to admit that to Jade.

"You have to let me know if you're in pain. I can give you some painkillers..." Jade responds in a stern tone; as she finishes up. She had already figured that the SAMCRO men weren't the type of guys to admit they were in any pain; and that Juice was just being stubborn.

"Will it leave a scar?" he asks with a hopeful tone.

He is taken aback as Jade laughs. "I doubt it. Did you want one?"

Juice just grins at her. "Sure. All the girls love for a man to show them a scar, Jade..."

He realises as soon as he had said it; that he had said something wrong. There is a brief look of pain across her face; and she abruptly closes the lid to the medical kit she had opened beside him. She quickly turns away as she grabs the kit and walks away.

"What'd I say?" asks a puzzled Juice to Archie.

He is surprised to see the annoyed look across Archie's face. Juice had missed the fact that Archie had looked really unhappy between the banter between the young Puerto-Rican and Jade. "Don't' worry about it, man!" he exclaims in a sullen tone. He hurriedly turns around and walks towards one of the bikes; which were parked between the two vehicles. He reaches down as if looking for an excuse to look the bike over.

Juice is even more puzzled at Archie's behaviour, but before he can think it over he notices that his colleagues were approaching them from a distance. They seemed to be in a hurry; but Happy wasn't with them.

"We need to get the hell out of here..." states Jax, as he looks behind them.

"Trouble?" asks Jade as she joins the guys where they congregate around the end of the flat pick-up.

"The organisers looked a little pissed when we turned up for the prize money..." adds Kozik as he hands over a paper bag full of money to Jade. He also takes a quick peek around as if to check no-one had followed them. Jade quickly puts the money away in her rucksack, not bothering to count it.

"I don't think we would have gotten the money if we hadn't gone in force..." adds Jax. "I had the distinct impression they thought we might be behind the set-up at the end of the track."

"There were some suspicious types hanging around, too..." adds Tig as he smiles at Jade.

Jadee offers him a concerned look; as she notices the bruise that was now showing on his forehead. Tig realises she had wondered where he had disappeared too. It was a story he thought he wouldn't mind telling her later. He got the distinct impression that she had been worried about him; and the thought gave him a warm glow inside.

"Aye, might be the people who tried to rig the race..." Chibbs ponders.

"Okay, let's get those bikes up on the flat-bed so we can get outta here..." Jax nods towards Opie.

Jax, Opie, Chibbs and Kozik head straight towards where the bikes were ready to be loaded. Juice begins to turn around so he is sitting on the edge of the flat-bed, to make some room for his colleagues to load the bikes. "You need to be in the cab, Juice..." states Jade as she offers out her arm to help him stand.

He shakes her head at her in refusal; he was quite happy to stay on the back of the vehicle. Jade gives him an annoyed look in return. "You need to keep that leg out of the cold..." she explains. "No arguments..."

"Yes, ma'am!" he grins when he realises that it was an opportunity to get close to her. He leans forward as if to take up Jade's offer of supporting him to the cab. However, Archie also moves up to his other side and between them they support him as they gently guide him around to the front of the pick-up.

It takes the effort of all of the rest of the men to finally lift up the bikes onto the back of the flat-bed and then tie them down.

"Where's happy?" Opie asks Kozik as he finishes and gets himself down from the pick-up.

"Went to collect his bets..." responds Kozik. "I told him to make it quick..."

In the meantime, Juice sits up in the passenger seat of the cab, as the door is closed by Jade. He is surprised as Archie looks up at him and offers out his hand to say goodbye; but quickly reaches down to shake it.

"You're gonna e-mail me, right?" asks Archie. "Or I'm on facebook..."

"Sure, man" responds Juice and offers his easy-going smile to his new friend.

Archie turns away to head back towards his own vehicle, and for a moment Jade follows him with her gaze with a thoughtful look on her face. She then turns back to Juice; and he picks up on the odd look on her face. He wasn't sure if she was till annoyed with him or if it was something else.

"I'm sorry if I said something to upset you, Jade..." Juice states softly.

Jade offers him a sad smile. "It's fine, Juice. You didn't ... upset me" she seemed embarrassed for a moment; and looked like she was going to say something further. "Just keep that leg elevated, okay?" she asks in the end.

"Sure..." responds Juice.

Jade finally turns around to find Charlie watching her, where he was leaning against the end of the Archie's pick-up. He nods towards her as if he wanted to talk. She walks forward, but sighs to herself as she hears one of the crew step up behind her. She guesses it was either Kozik or Tig keeping an eye out for her – again. In fact, both men had noticed that Charlie was patiently waiting for Jade and had walked up behind her.

Charlie looks briefly annoyed that Tig and Kozik were acting like her bodyguards. He decides to ignore them for the moment. He stands up from where he was leaning against the vehicle. Archie was just getting into the front as he was on his cell making a call.

"I'm coming with you..." Charlie states to Jade.

"You don't..." begins Jade.

"You think I'm gonna trust these guys to look after you and the ..." he pauses as he realises he couldn't say too much in front of Kozik and Tig.

"The money" finishes Kozik. Tig gives him a surprised look. "It's okay, we figured it out. None of our business..." he adds.

"Jade is perfectly safe with us" adds Tig. There is a hard tone to his tone. "We'll watch her back and get her to wherever she needs to be..."

Charlie gives Tig a rigid stare at the Tig's challenging tone. It goes silent as the two men continue to glare at each other.

"If you two have quite finished sizing each other up; I am quite capable to looking after myself!" interrupts Jade. She looks between the two men with an annoyed glance. Charlie raises his eyebrow at her whilst Tig can't hide the sudden smile on his face.

"I'm still coming with you..." insists Charlie.

Jade shakes her head in exasperation. "Great, join the band wagon!" she states as she stomps away towards the flat-bed pick-up. "Bunch of over-protective caveman!" she exclaims in irritation.

The three men look at each other. Charlie tries his best to keep his face serious; but ends up not being able to hide the smirk on his face. Tig grins. Kozik shakes his head.

"She must be talking about you, Kozik..." laughs Tig as he turns around to catch up with Jade.

Time To Go

They were ready to go.

Archie had already left in his van; Chibbs was in the front of the cab with Juice. Juice had his leg elevated and sat with his back against the door; so that there was only enough room for the two of them in the cab. Jax and the others were already sitting on their bikes and their helmets on; the engines idling whilst they all waited impatiently for Happy. The surrounding area was now dark and deserted; as most people had already left after the main race had finished.

Tig, Charlie and Jade were seated on the back of the flat-bed. They'd move the bikes so that there was just enough room for the three of them. Jade sat with her back to one side and her rucksack safely tied up next to her; Tig and Charlie just sitting opposite. It had stayed awkwardly silent between them for a while. Tig notices that Charlie was keeping a wary eye-out around them; but also kept glancing at Jade as if he was going to say something. Tig decided that the man had wisely decided to keep his mouth shut; Jade was still looking a little pissed off.

"Sorry, Jade" Charlie finally states. "I know that you're more than capable of looking out for yourself..."

Jade sighs. "You never used watch my back all the time, Charlie..." she states softly.

Charlie is quiet at first. However, as Tig watches the two of them he realises there was a thoughtful look on the military man's face. "Yeah, well, the Colonel asked me to keep an eye on you if anything ever happened to him..." Charlie finally admits.

Jade looks at him with a dazed look on her face. Her gaze changes to a brief look of pain before she suddenly looks away. Charlie bows his head as if he couldn't look at her. "Don't be mad at me, okay?" he finally pleads.

"I'm not mad at you, Charlie. Mark shouldn't have asked you for something like that..." she responds.

Charlie looks up again. "He was a good friend; I'd look out for you even if he hadn't asked..."

"Charlie..." she begins.

"Mind you, I'm not sure what I've let myself in for. I don't remember you having such a temper..." he grins at her.

Tig finds himself raising his eyebrow in surprise as he glances between the two of them. Jade looks away from Tig's amused stare.

"It's been a while. People change..." she finally admits.

"After what you've been through, I guess anybody would change..." Charlie adds.

Charlie was expecting Jade to glare at him. Instead, she looks away as if she was embarrassed. It dawns on Charlie that she was not discomfited because he was there; but because Tig was silently sitting with them. He was concerned that Jade seemed to care what the other man sitting with them thought of their conversation. He takes a second look at Tig for a moment; as if he was sizing him up. The icy stare that Tig returned didn't give anything away.

It is quiet until Opie approaches on his bike, so that he is within speaking distance of the back of their vehicle. He has his cell in one hand. "Happy's on his way now..." he explains. "Said we should get ready to split..."

He is interrupted as a gunshot rings out from the darkness.


	7. Chapter 7 Journeys End

Running Man

Charlie was surprised that the men he had only met that evening were so quick to respond at the first sign of danger. Opie had gunned his bike forward at the first sound of the shot; as if it would make him less of a target. He slowly circled around the pick-up and was warily peering into the darkness, keeping his head low and with a hand-gun already in his fist. He didn't see that Juice was already reaching for the gun in the pick-up's glove-box. Chibbs was turning the pick-up's engine over, ready to make a hasty exit. Kozik, Happy and Jax also began to move their bikes slowly forward, as if ready to move at an instant as they all peered into the surrounding night. Wherever the shot had come from, it hadn't hit any of them or the vehicles.

Jade, as usual, was quick off the mark. At the first sound of the shot, she had already pulled out a handgun from the back of her belt and was crouching in the pick-up. Her head was moving from side-to-side as if trying to gauge where the shot had come from. The guy calling himself "Tig" had not pulled his own gun at first; he had looked across to Jade as if to make sure she was okay. He'd even leant forward slightly as if he was ready to cover Jade with his own body.

Charlie hadn't liked that too much; he got the impression that they had worked together in a dangerous situation before. He had the feeling that Jade was close enough to this guy to know that he'd automatically look to her safety first. She'd even glanced at Tig briefly with a look on her face that Charlie recognised. One that told him she was quite able to look after herself. Tig had found himself automatically leaning back again when he'd realised she wasn't hurt.

Charlie had pulled out his own gun and peered around to try to position the shooter; but all he could see was the surrounding darkness. He automatically looked across to Jade with a question on his face. They'd worked together long enough to be able to communicate in silence. Jade shakes her head to confirm she couldn't locate where the shot had originated from. Charlie, like the others, was straining to hear over the sound of the pick up's and bikes engines for another shot. Seconds went by, but the shot was not repeated.

Jade's friend finds himself catching his breath as he notices here suddenly lifting her head; she was looking up at a gradient slope that was to the south of them with an intense look of concentration. She'd always had good night vision and hearing; and he knew she had picked up on something.

"There!" she suddenly whispers. Both Tig and Charlie follow her gaze. For a brief moment, there was just darkness. Then, suddenly a light shone from just over the horizon of the slope. As the light began to get brighter, Charlie can see a figure illuminated in the background light. He was running hell-bent down the hill and was waving his arms frantically. There was a slight breeze, and wind was in the right direction for them to hear the man holler.

"Go! Go!" screams Happy as he races down the hill at break-neck speed. He was running so fast that he occasionally stumbled but somehow he still managed to stay on his feet. The light from over the hill gets brighter, and Charlie can make out a vehicle's headlights as climbed over the top of the hill and began to race after the fleeing man.

By now, the rest of the SAMCRO men had also noticed what was going on; although Opie, Jax and Kozik had to look over their shoulders as their bikes were pointed in the wrong direction.

"Kozik, start up Happy's bike!" shouts Jax as he revs his bike forward. He makes a quick turn around the front of the pick-up, so that he was now racing towards where Happy was still running down the hill.

Opie isn't slow to follow; as he realises what his best friend was up to. He notices that Juice already had his head out of the window. "Get outta here!" shouts Opie to the young Puerto-Rican and slams his hand against the side of the vehicle in emphasis. He then he hurriedly turns his bike around to catch up with Jax. "We'll cover Hap! Catch you up!" they can hear faintly as he disappears into the darkness.

Chibbs guns his foot to the throttle and all three of the passengers on the back find themselves clutching onto the side of the pick-up at the sudden acceleration. Charlie watches the scene in the fading distance behind them; as the vehicle begins to speed up.

Kozik had hurriedly got off his own bike but left it running; he was frantically starting the engine on Happy's bike ready for his hasty return. Opie and Jax had both pulled out their own handguns as they rode straight up the hill in front of them. However, there was still quite a bit of distance between the two bikers and Happy. Charlie looks up to top of the hill; expecting to see the vehicle come bombing down the slope. However, the vehicle – from this distance it could have been some sort of jeep – had pulled up a few feet just below the horizon. More lights showed in the distance, and two more vehicles appeared over the horizon, but had also began to slow up.

"Gonna be close..." states Tig as he also looks into the retreating distance. There was a touch of worry on his face when he realises that the three vehicles were starting to slowly move forward again. Opie and Jax were finding it difficult to find a way up the slope as it begins to get steeper. Happy was also beginning to slow down and was obviously struggling to keep up the pace.

Both Charlie and Tig turn back towards the pick-up as they hear an audible click that they both recognise; the sound of a gun being put together. Tig has a look of astonishment on his face as he gapes at Jade. Charlie's face almost shows a smile at the familiar site in front of him.

Whilst the two men had been watching the scene behind them, she had been busy. The front pocket of her rucksack had been opened and she was hurriedly pulling out a dismantled long-barrelled rifle and putting it together. She doesn't even look up as she screws on the gun-stock. "Charlie, get them to stop the pick-up" she requests as she then pulls out an infrared-scope from the side of her rucksack.

Charlie quickly gets up and climbs over the bikes towards the cab. He reaches forward and bangs the back of the cab a couple of times. "Pull Up!" he shouts and finds himself hanging onto the side as the vehicle abruptly breaks.

Jade still had both her hands full with putting the rifle together, and the sudden halt of the pick-up throws her off balance for a moment. However, she doesn't fall forward as Tig had reached forward to steady her with his arms. For a brief moment she looks at him in gratitude and Tig offers her a hasty smile before letting her go.

"You want me to take the shot?" asks Charlie as he begins to make his way back over the bikes.

Jade does not respond as she reaches down. She lays herself face-down on the bed of the pick-up so that she was lying in the direction of the hill. The rifle in her hands was already loaded as she carefully peers down the sight; it was leaning on a pull-out tripod.

"Spot for you" volunteers Charlie as he carefully kneels down so that he isn't in Jade's way.

"Left my NVB at home" she responds as she concentrates on checking the range on the scope.

In the meantime, Chibbs had left the cab of the vehicle to find out what was going on. He'd left Juice in the driver's seat; although his leg was still hurting he had told Chibbs he could still drive if needed.

Chibbs watches with is eyebrow raised and a look of surprise on his face; as Jade adjusts the scope and then lays her head down again to take a further sight. He peers across to Tig and they swap a glance. Tig has an appreciative grin across his own face as he goes back to observing Jade.

It was therefore Charlie and Chibbs who were the ones to look back at the scene behind them. They were pretty far away by now, but could just make out the lights of the vehicles and the running silhouette of Happy.

He wasn't going to make it, that much was certain. It was obvious the speeding vehicles would reach him and run him down before the Harley's could get near enough for Jax and Opie to cover and rescue him. Opie was firing his gun from his bike towards the vehicles; but he was too far away for a shot to count.

Jade's first shot rings out, and kicked up dirt just in front of the leading vehicle.

"Missed" Chibbs found himself stating. He wasn't even sure why he said it.

"Ssssh!" whispers Tig in annoyance. He quickly looks back behind them and then back to Jade; as if trying to work out the distance she had to cover.

"She's gauging the range" Charlie quietly tells Chibbs. "Difficult shot even in daylight..."

"Shut the fuck up!" requests Jade softly.

The men go quiet, and the second shot takes out the radiator on the first vehicle. The land rover comes to an abrupt stop as the front of the vehicle erupts in a cloud of steam. The buggy just behind the lead vehicle doesn't get a chance to stop and ploughs right into the back of the front vehicle; even at this distance they could all hear the sound of the crunch.

Jade's third shot kicks up grass in front of the last vehicle. But the men in the last vehicle weren't taking any chances as they hurriedly pull up behind their colleagues. Two men leap out with guns in their hands; they were looking around as if trying to figure out where the attack was coming from.

It gives the SAMCRO men time to rescue their colleague. Happy hadn't realised what had been happening behind him; all he had heard was the sound of one vehicle crashing into another. It gives him the incentive to pick up his pace. Opie and Jax had managed to find a way up the hill and quickly approach Happy. He jumps onto the back of Opie's bike and the two Harley's turn around and make their way swiftly down the side of the hill.

One of the men who had been chasing Happy starts to shoot at the retreating figures; as it suddenly dawns on him that their quarry was getting away.

Jade shoots her last few bullets in front of the figure; kicking up dirt in front of him. The guy stops shooting as he takes step-back; looking around apprehensively as if trying to find out where the gunfire was coming from.

Chibbs whistles in appreciation. "Fucking awesome, lassie..." he states. "Where you learn to shoot like that?"

Jade turns her head and just offers him a scornful look. Charlie finds himself smiling to himself, as he leans forward and beats Tig to helping Jade sit back up again.

"Time to high-tail it..." states Chibbs as he looks back behind them. Happy had just got off the back of Opie's bike and was seating himself on his own revving Harley; as he puts his helmet on. Jax brings up the rear, and a few seconds later all four of them start to bomb down the road towards the pick-up.

Mistake

It had been quiet on the back of the pick-up for the last ten minutes, as Jade puts away the gun and scope back in her rucksack. Opie and Jax had overtaken the pick-up and were taking the lead. Kozik and Happy took the rear; keeping a little distance behind in case any further trouble was following. However, the road was quiet for the moment; most of the crowd from the race had already headed out.

Tig jumps as his cell phone suddenly vibrates in his pocket. He'd forgotten he'd left it on silent after the incident with the Bounty Hunters. He pulls out the phone and answers. "Yeah?" he asks and then listens for a few seconds. He looks across to Jade. "Where we goin', babe? Jax needs to know which turn-off to take..."

"Head for South Oakdale for now..." advises Charlie as he peers out over the side of the vehicle. He can just make out the lead biker with a phone to his helmet; obviously Jax Teller.

"No, Charlie" interrupts Jade as she turns back to Tig. "They've already done enough tonight. Alex, you can just drop me back to your garage..."

Tig just offers Jade a wicked grin. "South Oakdale..." he informs Jax and then puts his phone away.

Jade shakes her head to herself; but decides there was no point in arguing.

It goes silent between them for a while, until Charlie finally speaks up. "Any idea who those guys were chasing your friend?"

"Nah" advises Tig. "Hap'll let us know when we stop. Probably the bastards who rigged the race..."

They are again interrupted by the sound of cell phone; this time it is Charlie who pulls out his phone. He takes a brief look at the number and offers an unhappy look across to Jade as he recognises it and quickly answers.

"Go..." he confirms. Tig raises his eyebrow at the military-sounding response. Charlie listens for a while. "Shit!" he silently swears to himself. Jade looks across to him as if she knew understood what the phone call was about. "You got my location? I'll need transport..." he responds. Whilst he waits for a few minutes for a reply; he covers the phone with his other hand and looks across to Jade. "Sorry, Jade. Gotta bale..."

"You on call-out?" she asks.

He nods before going back to his conversation. "Where? Okay, I can do that. No, no problem. Fifteen minutes..." he confirms and then finishes the call.

He looks across to Tig; and notices the puzzled look on his face. "Can you ring your boss, Trager? I need us to make a stop shortly..." he pauses as he notices that Tig wasn't automatically pulling out his phone from his pocket.

"Never told you my name was Trager..." he states with a challenging tone to his voice and the rigid stare back on his face.

Charlie realises his mistake and quickly looks across to Jade. She had her eyebrow raised, but Charlie remains silent and actually looked slightly embarrassed for once. "Answer the man, Charlie..." Jade finally requests.

"Fuck!" Charlie swears as he leans back and moves his head from Jade back to Tig. Both were obviously waiting for his answer.

"T.J." Jade suddenly guesses. "I guess he passed on that background check..."

"He was concerned, Jade. That you were hanging around a bunch of..." Charlie pauses as he notices the annoyed look on her face.

".. biker-thugs ..." finishes Tig. There was a touch of disgust in his voice that this guy was making assumptions about him and his colleagues.

"Ex-con's..." corrects Charlie as he looks across to Jade with an apology on his face.

"Fellow residents of Charming. Where I happen to live..." responds Jade. "And I thought you'd be the last person to judge a book by its cover..."

Tig couldn't help the look of surprise on his face that Jade was defending him and his fellow members of SAMCRO. However, he recalls that Jade had also made the same mistake when he had first met Clay and Jax; and then him, Hap and Juice. It made him realise that she had definitely warmed to his colleagues – and especially to him.

"Sorry, Jade" apologises Charlie.

"Not me you owe the apology to..." she responds quietly as she gives him a pointed look.

Charlie looks across to Tig again. Tig could see that this guy wasn't going to offer him any sort of apology by the hard glint in his eyes. Charlie is saved by the cell in his hand, which suddenly beeps. He looks down as if to check something; and then looks back up to Tig.

"There's a right-hand turning coming up in about three minutes. Leads to an empty field. You mind dropping me off there?" he asks. Tig grins in return as he realises it was as much an apology he was going to get; and starts to pull out his own cell phone.

The Lift

The field they ended up in was in the middle of nowhere. It was an old oil field where the oil had run dry and an old and rusty derrick had been abandoned. The moon had finally decided to make an appearance; but it was still dark enough that the SAMCRO men had left their bike lights on. Chibbs had also left the pick-up's engine running so the lights were full-on and illuminated the surrounding area. The field was large and flat; and quite far from the main road.

Juice had stayed in the cab of the pick-up and was watching out of the window as the others congregated between the bikes and the pick-up. Tig and Charlie had got themselves down. Before either of them had a chance to turn around to help Jade out; she jumped off herself.

Jax and Opie both had puzzled looks on their faces as to why they were here. Charlie was loath to offer any type of explanation; but before he can say anything it is Jade who speaks first. "Would you mind not asking any questions just now, Jax?" she asks. Jax looks at Tig as if seeking an answer; but Tig just shrugs. He was just as mystified why they had stopped here as anyone else. Jax finally nods in agreement to Jade.

Opie notices that Charlie was still looking down at his phone as he interrupts the sudden silence between them. "My lift'll be here in less than a minute..." he confirms to Jade. Even Chibbs could see there was an unspoken message between Jade and Charlie as he glanced at her.

Jade's next action takes Charlie by surprise for once, as she steps towards him and then gives him a hug. "Be careful, okay?" she asks as she pulls away.

"Always, Jade" responds Charlie as he looks across to where Jax stood, with Opie on one side and Tig on the other. "Can I rely on you guys to take care of things here?"

"Charlie..." begins Jade, but goes quiet at the determined look on his face.

Charlie looked across at Jax and Tig. Jax doesn't say anything as he nods in confirmation; and for once Tig didn't offer Charlie an icy stare as he also reluctantly nods in acknowledgement.

The quite between them for a moment is interrupted by an approaching sound none of them recognise; it was coming from the distant horizon. Only Jade and Charlie look up at the night sky in expectation and recognition.

The faint "whump whump" sound gets louder and it is only a few seconds before they can make out a dark shape in the night sky. A black helicopter shines a bright beam of light over the area they are standing in; and they all have to put their hands over their eyes to keep the dust and dirt out of their eyes. Juice looks out from the pick-up's cab and he has his mouth open in pure astonishment.

The helicopter hovers for a moment as if checking the area; before landing quickly at the edge of the field. The two men in the Helicopter are wearing military gear and the one in the back waves at Charlie as if he needed to board quickly.

Charlie takes one last look at Jade and offers a crooked smile; she finds herself returning the smile.

"Fucking neat lift!" shouts Tig over the noise of the engine; his hand over his head to keep his hair in place. The helicopter's rotors are still going as if ready to make a hurried take-off.

By this time Juice has his head completely out of the window of the cab and is still gaping at the site in front of him. Chibbs, Happy and Kozik are still stunned and watch in silence. Opie and Jax swap a bemused look.

Charlie takes a step back and then turns around and heads towards the Helicopter. His eye happens to catch the site of Juice still gaping at the sight in front of him; and he quickly turns back to Jade. He shouts out something; but over the sound of the rotors the others are not sure what he has said. However, Jade grins at him as if she understood and offers him a thumbs-up sign.

Charlie turns around and scrambles aboard the Copter, and it immediately takes off again. He offers Jade a neat salute with a grin on his face, before it turns around and heads out.

Finally, the helicopter's loud noise disappears into the distance, and the wind dissipates. It stays unusually silent between the group of SAMCRO men; none of them knew what to say.

"Shit!" states Juice from the cab in excitement and astonishment; his head still out of the window but now looking up at the night sky. "That was better than my on-line war games!"

Juice's Surprise

Jade is the one who is the one to finally break the awkward silence. "I guess I owe you an explanation..." she begins to say to Jax and the others.

The guys all swap another look, but it is surprisingly Opie who is the one to respond. "Your friend is in the military; I'm guessing he's pretty important by the way he "hailed" that lift..." he states with a grin on his face.

Jade doesn't seem to know how to respond at first, by the look on her own face. She seems to take a moment to think, but is interrupted before she can say anything further.

"Probably off saving the world; men like him keep our country safe..." interrupts Kozik. His sharp tone of voice made the others glance at him in surprise. It was if he was telling them not to ask any more questions.

It is Jax who realises that Jade still looked uncomfortable at this line of questioning. "None of our fucking business..." he finally states and glances around at the others to show he agreed with Kozik's comment.

Jade can't help the surprised but grateful look that crosses her face. Before she can say anything in gratitude; Tig moves over to stand next to Jade as if to break the awkward silence amongst his colleagues.

"What was that he was saying as he left, sweetheart?" Something about his friend, Archie?" asks Tig.

Tig is surprised to see the red flush in her cheeks, and that she had quickly glanced across to where Juice still had his head peeking out of the cab as he watches the others. "Charlie was saying I should let Juice know about him..." Jade reluctantly tells him.

"What about?" asks Kozik; he gets his question in just before Tig had the chance and Tig gives him a dirty look.

"Archie ... well ... I don't know him that well; but he's ..." Jade then goes silent and find herself floundering

"I thought you hadn't met him until tonight, lassie?" prompts Chibbs.

"I've met him in passing..." confirms Jade; "he's a brilliant mechanic; the guys in Charlie's unit won't let anyone else touch their vehicles. But he's got in trouble a few times so he's stuck permanently in the motor pool..."

"Trouble?" prompts Opie; as he realises Jade was still struggling with what she wanted to say.

Jade glances again at where Juice was watching them in curiosity; and seems to come to a decision. "Well, Archie doesn't like women..." she finally admits.

The crew swap a bewildered look; it is Tig who is the first to pick up Jade's meaning. "He prefers men..." he grins at the others.

Happy suddenly laughs. "Juicy-bate!" he exclaims to his colleagues with a smirk on his face.

The others all join in his laughter; Jade is the only one who didn't understand what Happy had meant and has a slightly perplexed look on her face. "You shouldn't make fun" she advises. "Charlie was telling me it's only fair I should warn Juice; Archie can get quite ... intense ... when he's had a few beers..."

Her comment just makes the SAMCRO men laugh even harder; Jade begins to look even more bewildered by their reaction. Finally, Chibbs smiles at her. "Nay worries, darling. I'll let Juicy-boy know..."

However, before he can say anything further, he notices that Juice was limping up to where they all stood. He had gotten out of the cab when he had realised that he was missing out on something; he was not sure why his colleagues were all laughing. As he approached them; he even got the distinct impression that they were all laughing at him.

"Okay, guys, what's the joke?" asks Juice in complete innocence. Kozik and Happy swap another amused look and break into another round of laughter.

Tig smiles as he notices that even Jade seemed to have a hard time keeping her face straight; at the confused and puzzled look on Juice's face.

Chibbs continues to smirk as he reaches forward and slaps Juice on the back. He then turns his young colleague around back towards the cab of the pick-up. "Back in the cab, Juicy-boy" he exclaims with the laughter still in his voice. "You and I need to have a little chat about the type of friends you've been picking up lately..."

"Okay, now I want to know what the joke is!" exclaims Jade. However, she was no longer annoyed but the amusement among the men had finally gotten to her; she was having a hell of a time not joining in their laughter.

Tig gingerly puts his arm around her shoulder; he is surprised that she didn't shrug him off or slap his face. Kozik stops laughing and scowls; as he notices that Jade didn't seem uncomfortable at this personal gesture.

"Long story; I'll tell you the whole thing once we're on the road again..." as Tig begins to lead her to the back of the pick-up.

"Don't forget to tell her the part about how you got Juice into the infirmary..." states a now annoyed-looking Kozik as he and the others begin to walk back towards their bikes.

Tig puts his arm that wasn't across Jade's shoulders behind his back. He raises two fingers at Kozik.

Final Destination

Jax had taken the lead along the deserted road. It was now approaching dawn, and the night sky was beginning to turn from a dark grey to a dusky pink. He slows his Harley as he comes up to the junction that Jade had directed him to from the GPS on her phone, when they had stopped for a quick restroom break. There is a large sign hanging on the gated entrance to a driveway that disappears into the distance. Jax stops his bike and hears the others pull up behind him.

The sign read "Saint Tabeth Home for Orphaned Children" and there was a silhouette of a nun just above the black writing against a cream background. However, a large notice was pasted across the bottom and Jax finds himself having to lean across his bike to read the sign clearly.

Opie didn't have such good eyesight as Jax but had noticed the notice was in bold red letters.

"What's it say?" he asks Jax in curiosity.

"Foreclosure notice" advises Jax as he peers intensely at the writing on the sign. "The home is going to be closed and bull-dozed within the next few days unless the mortgage is paid..."

It goes quiet between Jax, Opie, Kozik and Happy as they glance at each other. Jade has stood up and is peering at them across the cab with a worried look on her face. Tig is standing just behind her and has a look of curiosity on his own face.

"Guess that what's the money's for..." guesses Kozik.

Jax doesn't reply, but puts the brake on his Harley and leans it to one side and then gets off his bike. He walks up to where Jade was still standing as he takes off his helmet. "This why we're here?" he asks as he nods toward the notice and then peers back up to Jade.

Jade looks around at the SAMCRO men and realises they were all offering her looks of understanding. She can feel Tig place his hand on her arm for a moment; as if in silent support. It dawns on her that they all finally understood why it had been so important to obtain the money. "They have till nine this morning to pay off the mortgage to the bank; or they'll lose the whole place" she finally explains.

As she is talking, Kozik and Happy both park their Harleys and also get off their bikes to join the others. Kozik starts looking around at the gated entrance and along the road. "Must be a pretty big property..." he muses to himself.

"About twenty acres in total; there's a small farm the other side..." Jade confirms.

"Place like this could help a lot of little kiddies..." adds Chibbs from the front of the cab. He had the window down to listen to the conversation.

"How you know about this place, Jade?" asks Tig with an unusual gentle tone to his voice.

"It's ... complicated. The kids here are special..." she begins to explain.

"All kids are special..." offers Opie with a grin; he wasn't afraid to show he was a proud father.

"The orphaned children here come from war-torn countries all over the world. Most of them have been traumatised one way or another..." continues Jade. "They are cared for and loved here; but it costs a lot of money to keep the place going. The church can only afford to part-fund it so it mostly relies on private donations..."

"Shit!" exclaims Happy under his breath.

"Good thing we got the money to save it, then..." Jax responds.

"I wish you'd told us earlier, Jade..." admonishers Tig, as he briefly gives her a one-armed hug. "We would have helped you without all the secrecy..."

"I..." Jade then pauses as she looks around again at Tig's colleagues. "I didn't know that to say..." she finally admits. "I can't thank you all enough for what you've done..."

It was the one and only time that all of the SAMRCO men looked embarrassed and uneasy. Even Juice had a red blush to his cheeks as he had his head once again peeking out of the passenger window.

"Okay, then" Jax finally states. "Guess riding up to the front of the property in our Harley's would scare the hell out of those children..."

"You can drop me off here; it's only a short walk to the main house..." states Jade as she turns around as if to pick up her rucksack and jump off the back of the pick-up. She pauses and turns back when she hears a familiar voice from behind the gates.

"Nonsense. The least we can do is to provide you're ... companions ... here with a breakfast before they leave us..."

The men all turn around to notice a figure just opening the front gates. The guy was huge – he would have given Opie a run for his money. He was as tall as Happy and built like an ox. However, his grey tightly-curled hair did not give his age totally away. His skin was a dark ebony, and he carried his weight comfortably. It was only the clothes he wore that took away his dangerous image – he wore black jeans and a blue shirt (he never could find a clerical outfit that really fit him). Around his neck he wore a clean, white clerical collar and a silver crucifix glittered in the oncoming dawn light.

"Uncle Rob!" exclaims Jade in jubilation; as she quickly jumps off the back of the pick-up and runs towards where he stood beside the open gate. He offers out his arms and returns her emotional hug; almost lifting her off her feet. He warily looks over her shoulder at the surprised crew but the SAMCRO men found it was difficult to read his face; it was cool and composed but did not give any indication of condemnation or surprise.

As Jade pulls away from him; she noticed the slightly raised eyebrow and knew him well enough to know that her entourage had taken him by surprise. "These are some ... friends" she explains to him. "They helped me get the money to save the orphanage..."

"Really?" he raised his eyebrow at her. Jade doesn't seem to know how to respond at first.

"Jax Teller..." Jax introduces himself and steps forward and offers out his hand. The old man stepped around Jade to take his hand and gave it a firm shake.

"Father Robert Washington..." he introduces himself. "God works in mysterious ways; you have come in answer to our prayers..." Jax and Opie swap an amused smile at this comment; Jax got the distinct impression the old man had picked up on their exchange but had ignored it. "You are most welcome to join us in our morning meal..." continues the priest.

"We should leave our Harley's and the pick-up here..." Jax finally responds. "We don't want to wake the children up..."

There is a very brief look of surprise on the old man's face at Jax's words. "There speaks a father..." he states. Jax offers him a bemused glance in return. "Most of the children are already awake as they're used to early mornings. But you're consideration is much appreciated. This way, please..." he turns around to lead the way. Jade quickly moves forward to walk alongside him; she puts her arm though his in a comfortable gesture.

It takes a moment before the others decide to follow. Tig realises that Jade had briefly forgotten the rucksack with the money in, and quickly picks it up and puts it across his shoulder before jumping off the back.

Chibbs helps Juice out of the cab and locks the pick-up as they quietly follow the others.

Breakfast

The main house had once been a large mansion; but it had been extended over the years and both sides of the main house had a one-storey extension. It was the size of a medium school and even this early there was some activity through the front windows. Various habited figures – which were obviously nuns – we already up and about.

The priest had led them through the main hall into the dining area. It was already busy as several nuns were laying the tables ready for breakfast; although there were not any children around yet. Father Washington walked straight up to a top table where an older woman in a grey nun's clothing waited with a perplexed look on her face.

"We have guests, sister Mary!" exclaims the priest in a jocular tone. "Can we spare some breakfast for our weary travellers?"

The nun nods but did not say anything, and then turns her around to start instructing her fellow sisters to lay the top table.

"Please, sit down!" exclaims Father Washington as he points out the top table to the club members. The men silently sat themselves down; looking around at the dining room which was large but seemed comfortable and homely.

The priest sat at in the middle chair; with Jax to one side and Jade to the other. Tig had somehow wangled his way to sit the other side of Jade; ignoring Kozik's glower in the process.

It goes awkwardly silent at first; the priest seemed to pick up on the nervous way most of the SAMCRO men were glancing around the dining hall. "We have fresh eggs and bacon from our farm; breakfast won't be long..." he advises, as if trying to put the men at ease. One of the nuns began to silently put out plates and cutlery in front of their guests.

"Thank you" responds Opie, indicating that he was thanking the priest as well as the nun.

The priest beams at all of them as if in benediction. He then turns towards Jade who returns his smile. "I must admit, Jade, you are always full or surprises. When you rang Wednesday I wasn't sure you would really be able to find the money to keep our home open..."

"I wish you'd told me earlier, Uncle ... I mean, Father ... that you were in so much trouble. It would have given me more time to find all of the money..." she responds.

"God always finds a way, my child..." berates the priest. He notices the poignant look she gives him. "Are you still one of the fallen, my little Jade?" he asks softly. "You still don't believe in the almighty?"

Jade just shakes her head sadly in response; she looks away from the Father's gaze and down at the table. Tig was watching the conversation closely and he knew Jade well enough to figure out there was a whole story behind her response. He notices the silent look of pity that the priest offers the woman that he was in love with.

"Still, eighty-two thousand and four hundred dollars is a lot of money to find..." the priest states; it was if he was changing the subject to avoid embarrassing Jade any further. The Father looks away from Jade and turns towards Jax. "And I assume these ... companions ... of yours have also been blessed to assist in our time of need..."

Jax and Opie had already swapped a look when the priest had mentioned how much money was needed to keep the orphanage open. It meant that Jade had been carrying over sixty thousand dollars on her since they had left the garage. Jax realised it just added more mystery to the woman the club had so recently become to know; his main thought was how she would have been able to find so much cash in such a short time.

"I wouldn't say we were exactly sent by God, Father..." denies Jax.

"Let's just say we were in the right place at the right time..." adds Opie.

Father Washington smiles at them again. "God works in all of us, my sons – whether we know it or not. However he works, we are grateful for him for providing in our hour of need..." he states; as if he had to have the last word.

"Speaking of money..." states Tig as he takes off the rucksack from his shoulder. He begins to hand it toward the priest; who takes the heavy bag and hands it over to one of the nuns. She looks bemused but hurriedly walks away with the money as if to find a safe place for it.

Two nuns then silently walk in with loaded trolleys of bacon, eggs and toast. There were two large urns for tea and coffee. They quickly move the piled-high plates of food onto the tables.

"Help yourselves; my friends!" states Father Washington.

Kozik, Chibbs and Juice are the first to reach forward with their forks. However, they pause when they hear a loud "Wait!"

They all turn to Happy in surprise. Even the priest has his eyebrow raised at the bald-headed man at the sudden interruption. "Shouldn't we ... I mean ... shouldn't we say grace first?" asks Happy with a confused look on his face.

Chibbs and Juice swap an embarrassed glance that they had not thought of it themselves; and that they had dived straight into the food without thinking where they were. Kozik finds himself awkwardly putting his fork back down on the table.

"We are not that formal, here, my son..." smiles the priest. "But if you would like to do the honours?"

Even Jax and Opie are surprised by the embarrassed flush that crosses Happy's face in response. However, he takes a deep breath before folding his hands together and bowing over his empty plate. His fellow crew members quickly follow his gesture; even Jade bows her head and closes her eyes.

"For what we are about to receive, we are truly grateful..." begins Happy in a soft and low voice. "Also, we thank you for sending your beautiful angel to lead us here today so we can help this good and noble cause..." Happy still has his head bowed so misses Jade looking up at him briefly in embarrassment. "Amen" he finishes.

"Amen..." everyone else mumbles in complete agreement; and they all lift their heads. Chibbs and Opie find themselves grinning at Happy's words. Happy was the type of guy who normally didn't say too much; they were both surprised by their fellow club member's impromptu speech.

Tig finds himself smiling at the red flush in Jade's cheeks. She notices that Tig was watching her and for once smiles in return. Tig finds himself lost in her eyes for several seconds until he hears Jax state "Tuck in, boys!"

Children

The guys hadn't said no when a second helping of fresh breakfast was wheeled to the table; and had gleefully tucked into another round. This time there were also pancakes and syrup; and it was obvious this was the priest's favourite part of breakfast as he had helped himself to a large pile of pancakes and smothered them in maple syrup.

It was silent as they all continued to eat; but it was a comfortable quiet between them.

Tig happened to be watching Jade when he notices she suddenly pauses whilst eating some toast. He realises she is peering towards a door to the other side; and turns round to follow her gaze. Two small brown heads are peeking shyly around the door frame; one with dark and short curly hair and the other with braided hair. He turns back to notice the gentle smile that Jade offers the two children; she silently gets up and walks around the top table.

"Aunty Jade!" shouts out the braver of the two children as she runs forward; Jade kneels down so that the little girl can give her a hug. The little boy shyly follows and hesitates as he looks up at her for a moment. She smiles at him, and the boy reaches forward and wraps his arms around her legs.

"Come in, children. Don't be shy of our guests..." Father Washington gently encourages as he notices three more children peer timidly around the door.

Before long, the rest of the children enter the dining room and begin to noisily sit themselves at the other tables. There were about fifty in total; some of them were disabled as they were wheeled in wheelchairs or made their own way on crutches. Some of them had hands or legs missing; their ages varied between four and seventeen and they were a variety of races from Asian to African.

Jade had picked up the young girl and sat her down at a nearby table; she puts her other arm around the little boy who keeps hold of her leg and looks up at her in obvious adoration. One of the nun's comes up to take the little boy's hand; when she realises that he wasn't going to let go of Jade's leg. "Come on, Joshua, don't you want some breakfast?" The little boy – who couldn't have been more than four – just shakes his head silently and wrapped his arms tighter around Jade's leg.

Jade smiles at the nun and moves to two nearby empty seats; she gently disengages the little boy from her leg but keeps hold of his hand as she sits down next to him. Joshua grins in happiness at her as she begins to load up his plate ready for breakfast; he almost preened at the personal attention he was getting from his favourite person.

Kozik and Tig swap a smile as they both watch the scene in front of them. For once their thoughts were in accord; that Jade was always surprising them. Their hostility towards each other was forgotten for the moment; thanks to the sense of amity and cheerfulness in the atmosphere that surrounded them.

Opie and Jax start to talk to the priest about some of the children; and the Father was obviously pleased about their interest. Happy was trying his best to watch Jade without being too obvious about it. Chibbs was still heartily eating his way through a third helping.

Juice was staying quiet but enjoying the breakfast; he was seated at the end of the table. He feels a small hand on his injured leg and turns around to find a young boy looking up at him with an anxious look on his face.

"Est-ce que ca fait mal?" the little boy asked.

"Sorry, kid?" asks Juice.

"He's asking if the leg hurts?" asks a female and French-accented voice. He looks up and notices a young nun smile at him. Although her nun's habit covered up her hair, he could see she was actually quite attractive. He finds himself blushing at the improper thought; and finds himself looking away.

"No, its fine..." he responds and smiles down at the little boy who was still looking up at him with a concerned look.

"Est-ce que le mauvais soldats faire un trou dans votre permettez?" asks the boy again.

Juice finds himself shaking his head as if to say he still didn't understand.

"Speak English, Jean..." the nun asks the boy softly, with an encouraging tone to her voice.

The boy looks to the nun and then back again to Juice. "Bad soldiers ... " he hesitantly asks "... make ... hole?" he then points to the bandage covering up his wounded leg.

"No, kid. The leg's fine... " Juice offers a tender smile. "No ... bad soldiers around here..."

The boy seemed relieved and returns his smile.

"You making friends again, Juicy?" asks Chibbs from where he sat next to him; an entertaining tone to his voice.

"Juicy?" asks the nun in surprise.

Juice quickly turns around and offers Chibbs a dirty look; he then turns back to the nun with a smile back on his face. He offers out his hand to Jean as if in introduction. "You're Jean? My name's Juan-Carlos. I think it's like your name, only in Spanish..."

The little boy did not seem to know how to respond; but the nun reaches forward and shakes Juice's hand as if to show the little boy. The boy watches silently, and when the nun lets Juice's hand go he also reaches forward hesitantly and takes Juice's hand in his.

Forgiven

The SAMCRO men had typically disappeared before the washing up had to be done. Not that the sister's minded, as their guests had ended up outside in the basketball court located at the back of the house. Most of the children had gone out to watch, so it had thankfully kept them out of the nun's way for a while.

It was Tig, Kozik and Jade versus Chibbs, Happy and Opie. Plus four of the older children had joined in (two on each team), so the game wasn't serious but kept everyone entertained. However, there had been a lot of mucking-about by the club members. Happy and Tig acted the fools, whilst Chibbs and Opie tried to keep the others in line; and also kept an eye on the children. Jade turned out to be fast on her feet and had scored the only two points so far. She had cheated on the second point by holding up one of the youngest children so he could reach the basketball hoop and put the ball in.

Kozik kept up a running commentary for the crowd as he ran from one end of the court to another; and most of the children were screaming and laughing at the entertaining spectacle.

The priest had bowed out and said he was too old to play; although Jax had a feeling this was just an excuse and the older man would probably have given them all a run for their money. They were standing next to each other as they watched the game, with Juice comfortably seated to one side in a plastic garden chair. The little boy called Jean had formed a shy attachment to Juice and was sitting on the ground next to his new friend. A small table had been placed in front of them so Juice could have refreshment if he needed it.

It was coming up to the end of the game, and for once Chibbs had the ball and was making his way towards the net at the other end of the court. Jade smartly ducks around him and he suddenly loses the basketball. He comes to a rapid stop with an astonished look on his face. He feels a slap on his back as Opie hurriedly overtakes him to chase after Jade.

Jade abruptly swerves around and notices that Opie and Happy were between her and the other net. She quickly throws the ball to Kozik, who was standing just behind them and waving his arms around. However, Kozik misses the throw and the ball drops to the floor. Happy hurriedly grabs the ball and does a smart about-turn and takes a long shot. The watching children go quiet as the ball hits the rim of the basketball net a few times; before it finally goes through.

The crowd of children erupt in screams of excitement; as another point was scored. They didn't really care who won but were enjoying the game. Happy and Opie swapped high-fives with two of the children on the court; who had wisely stayed out of the way of the men when the game had gotten serious.

Father Washington blew the whistle in his hand as he looked at his watch, to call the end of the game. As the men began to walk off the court, one of the nun's hurriedly walks up to the priest and whispers something in his ear. He nods in acknowledgement, before she quickly walks away again.

Tig slaps Kozik on the back as they walk together towards where the others were congregating around Jax and the priest. "Butterfingers!" he exclaims to Kozik.

"What can I say, I got distracted!" Kozik jokingly responds as he puts his hand through his sweaty hair.

"Didn't think I noticed, did you?" asks Tig with a grin.

"Now look, Tiggy..." Kozik begins; a touch of anger in his voice.

"Don't let it hassle you, man..." interrupts Tig in a light tone. He found he was in a really good mood, as he finds himself once-again watching Jade, who was talking to a group of the children. "She can be very distracting, can't she? Damn fast on her feet, too..."

"Very fit. And hot. And..." continues Kozik.

"Not in front of the kids, brother!" states Tig as he happily puts his arm around his colleague in camaraderie.

Kozik suddenly stops walking as he finds Tig quickly kisses him on the forehead; and he ruffles his colleagues' hair before he lets go. "I'm in a totally excellent mood, Kozik! So I forgive you!"

"What!" exclaims Kozik as Tig pulls away and takes a step back.

"For the joke you pulled. Just don't do anything like that again!" exclaims Tig as he turns around and runs up to join Jade as she began to walk towards the priest and the others.

Kozik just shakes his head in bewilderment. "Poor bastard's got it real bad..." he mumbles to himself.

Short

As Jade approached the man who she had known since she was a child, she knew that something was wrong. Father Robert Washington was one of the most even-tempered and calmest men she knew, but she knew him well enough to know that something was troubling him. It took a lot to ruffle him, and the frown line across his brow gave his state of mind away.

"What's wrong?" she finds herself automatically asking. Jax and Opie were standing right beside the priest, and they looked surprised as she interrupted their conversation.

Uncle Rob – Father Washington now – smiled. But Jade knew it was a forced smile, and found herself raising her eyebrow at him. She could hear the rest of the SAMRCO men walking up behind her, but ignored them for the moment.

"Nothing to concern yourself with, my dear..." responds Robert Washington.

"Is it the money?" guessed Jade. She'd already wondered if he would be reluctant to accept the money, and she had fully expected him to ask where it had come from. It had surprised her when he had not made asked any questions when Alex Trager had handed the rucksack over to one of the sisters. "You're not going to refuse it?" she asks.

"Of course not!" exclaims the priest. She offers a puzzled glance as if expecting him to clarify further.

However, it is Sister Mary who is standing behind Father Washington and the SAMCRO men who interrupts. "It isn't going to be enough..." she confirms sadly.

"What!" exclaims Opie in surprise.

Father Washington turns around and offers the sister a stern look. "Now, Sister Mary..." he begins. "They have already performed a miracle to get this much together..."

"How much are you short?" Jax interrupts before the priest can continue.

The sister nervously looks around at the group of tough-looking men who are all now staring at her in surprise and bewilderment. She takes a deep breath as though finding courage. "We have just counted the money again. We are one thousand-three hundred and twenty dollars short..." she explains.

It goes quiet between the men as they all realise the situation.

"I knew we should have counted that prize-money at the winning table..." confirms Kozik. "I bet they short-changed us, the bast..." he pauses as he realises that in the present company he needed to watch his language.

"I'll come with you to the bank this morning..." interrupts Jade. "They'll take a credit card for the balance, won't they?" she asks the father.

There is a look of relief on the priest's face, but before he can respond it is Jax who interrupts again. "No need..." he exclaims. He swaps a quick glance with Opie, and Opie grins as he suddenly understands Jax's plan.

Jax turns to the rest of his crew, who are congregated around them. "Okay, guys... empty your pockets..."

Chibbs, Kozik and Happy all swap a guilty look. Jade, the Father and the nun all look at the group of men with a bewildered look on their faces.

"Come on, Jax..." Happy pleads with his V.P., as he realises what Jax was talking about.

Jax just gives him a stern look; he knew that Hap was pretty tight-fisted when it came to money. "I know you all put down bets on the race. Anti-up, boys..."

However, it is Tig who is the first to step forward. He pulls out his wallet, and places a small wad of notes onto the table in front of Juice. "Sorry, never got time to actually place a bet..." he exclaims to Jax. However, he had emptied his wallet of most of his immediate cash.

Even Juice pulls out a wallet from his back-pocket and placed his money on the table in front of him. Happy is the next to follow, and looks really unhappy and almost-wistful as he puts down the largest amount of money. However, as he puts his own wallet away he happens to look up and notices Jade offer him a grateful smile. He finds that even he couldn't begrudge losing his winnings in the circumstances.

"Never mind, Hap..." Kozik grins and slaps him on the back as he is the last to empty his wallet. "Easy come, easy go..."

The sister and priest look at the table full of money, as Juice hurriedly counts up the total. They swap a bemused and stunned look with Jade, who just offers a smile in return.

"Three thousand, two hundred..." advises Juice.

"You must take the balance back..." insists Father Washington. Jax picks up on the fact that the priest still seemed to be bewildered by his colleague's actions.

Jax swaps a quick glance with Opie and Chibbs, who both nod in confirmation of his silent appeal. "Use the rest to treat the kids, Father..." he suggests.

"You should take back the five-hundred Juice borrowed for the entrance money..." adds Jade. She is still feeling stunned that the men had been so generous, and offers a grateful and thankful look to all of the SAMCRO men.

Juice looks up at Jax with an appeal on his face. Jax grins and shakes his head and swaps another glance with Opie. "We'll cover it" responds Opie to the priest; his tone of voice brooked no arguments.

"God bless you all, my sons..." Father Washington finally adds.

Ride Home

Jade and Tig were now seated on opposite sides in the back of the pick-up again, as the tired but happy men of SAMCRO started to make their way back home. The Harley's led the way, but it would be several more hours before they reached the garage.

Jade had said an emotional goodbye to the priest and the children, and had promised to go visit again soon. The rest of the club had been given a cheerful and loud send-off from the children, as they had driven away from the orphanage.

Tig didn't feel tired, but had remained unusually quiet after they had seated themselves in the back of the truck. He finds himself watching the passing scenery, but is surprised that Jade is the first to speak.

"Can I ask you something, Alex?" asks Jade.

Tig looks at her with a smile back on his face. "Sure, ba ... Jade" he responds.

"Why did you act so ... weird ... when that little girl wanted to hug you goodbye?" Jade enquired.

Tig smiles as he remembers Jade could be pretty direct at time. "Weird?" he asks; he was hoping that she hadn't noticed his reaction when the little girl had reached for a hug.

"I could have sworn you almost jumped out of your skin, when she reached towards you. You had the oddest look on your face..." replies Jade.

Tig looks at her with an awkward grin. "You noticed that? You also notice what she was holding in her hand?" he asks.

"She had a doll, I think..." remembers Jade, her eyebrow raised as if she couldn't work out what he was talking about.

Tig finds himself looking away from her puzzled stare in embarrassment; and goes back to watching the passing scenery. "Damn things freak me out..." he mumbles.

It is silent for a few seconds, and he finally looks back towards Jade. She has a smile on her face as if she is trying not to laugh. "You're afraid of dolls? Really?" she asks in amazement.

"No need to go on about it..." Tig finds himself moaning as he looks away again in total humiliation.

"Cockroaches" Jade suddenly states after a few more seconds of silence. Tig finds himself looking back at her with a surprised look on her face. "Spiders and insects I'm okay with. But I hate cockroaches. Bloody things make me want to take a bath for a week..." Jade smiles at him and he returns her smile.

"I'll tell you mine if you tell me yours..." Tig finds himself stating. He pauses at he notices that Jade has her eyebrow raised at him, as if she had mis-understood his meaning. "I mean, there must be a whole story behind why you hate cockroaches. I'll tell you why I hate dolls in return..." he explains.

Jade laughs and Tig finds his smile getting wider. "Not hard to tell, that one. I was raised in Thailand – they have the hugest insects there. My grandfather had to fumigate his bar on a regular basis to stop me freaking out when I was a little kid. Cockroaches were the worst – I never did get used to them..."

"Thailand?" prompts Tig. This was the first time she had ever given any details of her childhood and upbringing, and he found he was pretty curious to know more.

Jade sighs as she sits back against the side of the pick-up, as if it was going to be a long story. Tig grins at her again in encouragement. "My father died when I was only six; he was in deployment in the far-east at the time and I was living on the base. My only other living relative was my grandfather – my mother's father. Him and dad didn't get on too well. My grandfather owned a bar in Thailand, so I ended up living with him. He was a grouchy old man, but I know he really loved me. He took good care of me, and found the money to send me to a top school in Hong Kong when I was a teenager..."

"This where you got all those "uncles"?" interrupts Tig.

Jade offers him a surprised look at first, as if she wasn't expecting the question. She seems to take a moment to think, as if reluctant to respond to Tig's question.

"Don't have to answer that question, if you don't want to, sweetheart..." he advises.

"It's okay" Jade sighs. "Guess it's all in the past now. Pop's bar was a meeting place for ... well, for mercenaries and soldiers-of-fortune..." Jade goes quiet for a moment as she remembers the past and has a faraway tone to her voice as she continues. "Most of the mercs became my "uncles"; they all treated me like I was their own little girl. You know, I learnt to shoot a gun before I could write properly? Some of them owned 'copters and would take me out for free rides as a treat. I remember Pop got pretty angry that I kept running around after the mercs; I think I must have given him a hell of a time when he was raising me. I was pretty wild back then..." she pauses as she notices the total look of surprise on Tig's face.

"You? Wild?" he grins. "Now that I would have loved to see..."

Jade smiles in return, but it is a sad smile at the memories Tig had brought to the surface. She finds herself rubbing her arms as if it had suddenly gone cold.

"Your uncle ... I mean the Father – he one of those mercs?" asks Tig in curiosity.

"He was my one of my grandfather's best friends..." she confirms, but then goes quiet again.

"He found God?" prompts Tig.

"I guess..." she confirms, and then rubs her arms again.

Tig suddenly realises it had gotten colder on the back of the pick-up. "Cold, babe?" he asks as he reaches forward and pulls out a blanket from where it was tucked underneath one of the bikes. Jade nods at him in confirmation. But instead of leaning forward and offering her the blanket, he opens it out with his arms as if offering her the spare space next to him.

Jade offers him a contemptuous look as he holds up the blanket, as if he was expecting her to sit right by him so he could wrap the blanket around her.

"I am not going to jump you on the back of a moving vehicle, Jade..." he advises with a serious tone to his voice. He notices the hesitant look on her face. "Suit yourself..." he adds. "If you want to stay cold for the next couple of hours..."

Jade stares at him for several seconds; as it trying to figure out if he was up to something. He just grins in response. Finally, she gets up and carefully moves across to sit next to Tig. He gingerly wraps the blanket around her, but doesn't remove his arm from around her shoulder. She doesn't shrug him off or make any objections, so Tig finally leans back and makes himself as comfortable as he could. It is with surprise that he feels Jade lean back as she relaxes against him.

"Alex..." she finally interrupts the quiet. "I want to know about the Tig-thing and the Doll-thing... "

"I never did tell you that story about how I got my nickname..." agrees Tig. "Well, it all began when..."

Home

The bikes pull up into their normal parking spaces at the Teller-Morrow garage, and the pick-up pulls up a few minutes later. Kozik is the first to get off his bike and heads towards the back of the pick-up. The others begin to follow, as Chibbs gets out and then walks to the other side to help Juice out.

Opie, Happy and Jax are surprised as they notice that Kozik turns around from where he was looking at the back of the pick-up. He has a huge scowl on his face as he barges through them and silently heads straight towards the club.

Chibbs (with a limping Juice beside him) are the final ones to step up to the back of the truck, and are just as surprised as the others at the sight that greets them.

Jade is fast asleep with a blanket wrapped around her, and is comfortably nestled in Tig's arms. Tig has as huge grin on his face as he meets his brother's stares. He brings his finger to his lips as if to tell the others to keep quiet.

Juice looks upset but doesn't say a word. Chibbs finds himself shaking his head to himself. Happy finds himself bringing his fingers to his lips, and is just about to blow a shrill whistle when he pauses at the look on Tig's face.

"You dare, Hap, and I'll break those fucking fingers..." Tig promises in a quiet voice, and gives his colleague a harsh glare.

Tig had tried to keep his voice low, but the sound must have woken Jade up. She begins to stir herself awake, and Tig looks disappointed as she begins to sit up. He finds his arms being gently pushed away, as he looks across at his brothers. He finds himself nodding his head to them, as if to tell them to move away so Jade wouldn't be embarrassed at their audience.

"C'mon, laddie..." Chibbs speaks to Juice and gently begins to guide him towards the club-house. "Let's see if Tara's here yet and get her to check your leg..."

Opie and Happy decide it was also best to walk away, leaving Jax the only one standing at the end of the pick-up. He watches as Jade stretches as she gets the kinks out. She is totally oblivious to the fact that the men had watched her when she had been asleep in Tig's arms.

"I'll get one of the prospects to drop you home, Jade..." Jax confirms. "You're pick-up won't be fixed yet..."

"Thank you, Jax..." Jade smiles at him. "For everything you and your club has done to help..."

Jax actually looks embarrassed but returns Jade's smile, before turning away.

Jade turns towards Tig, and for a moment their eyes lock. Tig finds himself leaning forward as if he wanted to kiss her, but pauses when she pulls away and notices the frown across her brow. "Friends, Jade..." he sighs as he hurriedly leans forward again and kisses her on the forehead before she can move away or object. As he pulls away again, she picks up on the sad and poignant look he offers her.

Tig sighs again, and then gets himself up and jumps off the back of the pick-up. "Later, babe. Gotta take a leak..." he states without turning around as he walks away.

Tig Trager misses the confused look on Jade's face. He also doesn't notice as she rubs her hand across her face and eyes, as if to wipe away unshed tears.

Messages

_Thursday_

**You have one message. First message sent today at 13:45**

"Hi, Jade. It's Tig. Sorry I missed you, babe. Shit, I hate these things" (pause) "Look, about Sunday. I won't be able to make it... got a bike show to ride to at the weekend with the guy's. Real sorry, I can't get out of this one... Look, ring me and let me know its okay. Maybe we can go up one evening next week... What? (Tig's voice goes faint as he talks away from the phone) I'm there in a minute, Clay! (voice goes clearer as he speaks again). "Ring and let me know, okay? Gotta go, babe..."

**You have one message. First message sent today at 16:45**

"Hi Alex, sorry I missed your call. No problem about Sunday. Just ride carefully, okay? Give me a call when you get back..." (pause) "Oh, will you thank Opie again for getting my truck sorted out so quickly? See you..."

**You have one saved and one new message. First new message sent today at 18:30**

"Alex, Jade again. Father Rob just called me – thank so much for all the toys Jax sent over on behalf of the club. The kids were so happy. Apparently they're all making thank-you cards for the guys – Hell, don't tell them that, will you? I'd rather it be a surprise when you all get back from your trip. I'll see you next week? Thanks again..."

_Sunday_

**You have one saved and one new message. First new message sent today at 12.30**

"Hey, babe. Got your message. Glad to hear the kids liked their surprise... (pause) ... It was nice to hear your voice (Tig pauses again) ... Look, things haven't gone that well this weekend. Shit, I don't know why I'm telling you this. Maybe just to hear a friendly voice... you take care, okay?"

**You have one saved and two new messages. Second new message sent today at 12.42**

"I miss you, Jade. I missed going up to our place this morning with you. Look, I'll be back tomorrow. Maybe we can meet up?"

**You have two saved and one new message. First message sent today at 16:26**

"Alex, is everything okay? You sounded ... I dunno ... real upset. Maybe we can talk when you get back? (pause). Hell, I forgot. I have to go to L.A. tomorrow to sort out some probate stuff for my husband. I won't be back till late. Look, don't worry about ringing me back today. Just give me a call when you're free? Or if you just want to talk? I'm here if you just want to talk, okay? (pause) ... I missed this morning, too..."

_Tuesday_

**You have three saved and one new message. New message sent today at 11:33**

"Hey, sweetheart. Sorry, Jade. Sorry I missed you again. Look, thing's are a bit crazy here right now. I really want to spend some time with you, but it's just manic (pause). What about we catch up on Saturday instead of Sunday? I'll take the day off, club business or no club business. We can have a real talk. Normal time? Shit! Gotta go. Love you, babe..."

**You have three saved and one new message. New message sent today at 19:01**

"Alex. We seem to keep missing each other – but Saturday's great with me. Hope everything's okay. If there's anything I can do to help, let me know, okay? (pause) I mean it, Alex. If you're in trouble or something, I want to help. Just let me know everything's okay?"

_Wednesday_

**You have four saved and one new message. New message sent today at 07:31**

"Jade, it's Tig again. Sorry, just got your message. Missed you again! It's early, so I'm betting you're out running! Everything's fine, sweetheart. I just ... I mean ... it's just been one of those shit weeks, you know? Nothing you need to be worried about. You know what? I'm really looking forward to Saturday. What if I bring a picnic and we spend the whole day up there? I need some time out. Don't worry, okay? I'll see you then..."

**You have four saved and one new message. New message sent today at 09:14**

"Hey Alex. I was out running when you rang – left my cell behind (pause). I wish you could have joined me – it was so fresh out and just so lovely in the woods. I ran for ages; but it gave me a chance to clear my head and think about some things (another pause). Hell, I hate leaving messages too. But I'm looking forward to Saturday. I think we need to have a long talk, okay? Take care, I ... (pause) just take care, Alex?"

_Thursday_

**You have five saved and one new message. New message sent today at 20:57**

"Jade, babe? What was this about having a talk? You're not going to say we can't be friends anymore, are you? I'd hate that. Look, I'm sorry if you think I've been pushing or something, sweetheart. You know I ... care for you, right? I know you don't feel the same way, and that's okay. Fuck, this isn't the place to talk about this. I think we really need to meet up. Saturday seems like its ages away. Just let me know that everything's okay between us, okay?"

**You have five saved and one new message. New message sent today at 23:06**

"Alex, it's Jade. I know it's late; sorry I missed you again. I don't get a good signal out here and I think the messages get delayed. I just ... it's not what you think, okay? Everything's okay between us, I just need to see you? I mean, we need to have a talk on Saturday. It's late, so I'll see you then?"

_Friday_

**You have six saved and one new message. New message sent today at 15:13**

"Alex? I've been trying to get you all day, but I guess you must be busy. Shit, I hate having to just leave a message like this. I am so sorry, but I can't make it Saturday. I really needed to speak to you. I hate having to do this, but something's come up (long pause). A friend of mine's in trouble, so I have to leave town ... the thing is, I could be away for a few weeks. I am so sorry, Alex. I wished I could have caught you; this would be so much easier if we could talk face-to-face. Shit, I've got to catch a plane in an hour! I have to go, Tig. I might not be able to pick up any messages for a while, but you're not to worry, okay? I'll call you as soon as I can. The cab's just turned up..."

**You have six saved and one new message. New message sent today at 17:18**

"Jade? Shit, I'm so sorry I didn't get to your call. It's been frantic here. I wish we could have spoken. I'm worried about you, sweetheart. Just let me know when you get my message? I miss you already..."

_Saturday_

"Hey, babe. Just ring or text me when you've got five minutes, okay? I just need to know everything's okay?

_Sunday_

"Hi Jade. I went up to our place this morning – feeling kinda lonely. It just wasn't the same without you, so I ended up coming straight down again. I got your text saying you're fine and you'd ring me when you got a chance. Just be careful, okay? I have a funny feeling that this isn't just about "helping" a friend out? Hell, maybe I'm just worrying too much. Take care, okay baby?"

_Wednesday_

"Babe? I've been thinking. I know you can't talk about it, but I haven't heard anything from you. Are you on some sort of mission? We never really talked about what you did. You know, before we met. It's okay if you can't talk about it. Just ... will you let me know if you need anything? If there's something I can do? Let me know you're okay? I ... care for you, sweetheart. Just let me know everything's okay?"

_Friday_

"I'm worried, Jade. With everything else going on, I just ... I just need to know everything's okay. That you're all right. I got Juice to check-up on your cell and he said you haven't picked up on my last few messages yet. Please, please, just let me know you're okay? I miss you. I know we can only be friends, but I was going to tell you tomorrow. I know this really isn't the place, but I ... you have to know how much I love you, Jade. I know you don't want to hear that – but I have to tell you. Just let me know you're all right?"

_Wednesday_

"Jade, sweetheart? I've left a ton of messages for you, please let me that everything's okay? I'm getting kinda worried here. (long pause) It's just gone to hell. Everything here's gone to hell. I just wish ... I wish we could talk. I need you so much right now. The last few days – with Clay and everything. Oh fuck, Kozik! You don't know about Kozik!" (long pause as if Tig was trying to get himself under control). "It's just gone all wrong, sweetheart. I ... I just lost it. I never meant it to go that far; but I was so angry about what they did to Clay. I did something on impulse; I just wanted them to make them pay (pause). "I guess none of this makes sense to you, but I don't know what else to do. You're the only who'll understand. (another long pause). "Please call me as soon as you get back, okay? I miss you..."


End file.
